Prophecy
by GerardSprings
Summary: CHAPTER 3!!! Ok, sorry y'all. FF.net refused to accept the file for some reason, but now it's up. R&R, please? I write on the fly, too, so any suggestions might make it!
1.

Prophecy

Prophecy 

A/N: This is long, so watch out. It is necessary to read this, though. Or at least a bit of it. If you want to skip my random ranting, scroll until you find some big, red text. After that is some key plot setting, and lead in. Even tough this will all be explained in the fic, it is clearer here. So you anti-ranters, start scrolling now! Noticed I've used a different font in the heading? Maybe not, if something screwed up. But if you do, this means that this will be a _special_ fic. Or at least, by my standards. Like I said in my other recent fic (appreciation), I was experimenting with a few alternative relationships. Well, I spent nearly an hour pacing, and tossing up the pros and cons. And storyline wise, I couldn't fit it in. And being an 'epic' fic, I need all the characters alive (so I can't kill Dagger), and I need them happy enough with each other to work together (so I can't break them up). So, lucky for all you pro-Dagger people out there, I'm keeping them together. It's a first! You may, after reading this, find it a little influenced by David Eddings' books. This is because I like his concept of a prophecy, and following it, and as the title hints, this plot is based fairly heavily on prophecy. And even though my aforementioned other recent fic (which was Zidane/Mikoto, a first, I think) didn't influence the relationship side of the story, it did set in my mind having Mikoto as a proper character, so…Any Mikoto fans out there will not be disappointed. If there are any… Wow, even by my standards, this looks to be a fairly epic authors note, too. It might even have to take up a chapter to itself. Oh well, it's been done before. So now that my A/N is getting its own chapter, I can run free!!! Muahahahahaha! Ahem. Where was I? Oh, yeah. I've been finding it really hard to match up characters for this fic (I've been mentally preparing a lot), because not many people really match up. I'm also annoyed there are no suitable male characters for Mikoto :PI'm tossing up wether to invent an original character or not. Original characters seem to suffer from an undocumented theory of mine. I am even considering writing a separate essay on it. And If I got a column, I would write about it… If… 

The theory goes, basically, that since all the canon characters (canon: original official storyline) have been balanced by professional scriptwriters, and gameplay experts, everything works out. The game would suck, for example, if a character on your side happened to be the son of a god, a god, a demigod, almost godly, etc… And that's only battle-wise. Battle-wise, this is fairly obvious. Granted, there are some conditions where super-powerful character in a battle is acceptable (saving the characters, divine intervention, battle not important anyway, character has a legitimate reason). An example is in FF7, where Cloud and Sephiroth are fighting together. Sephy one-shots the green dragons, without breaking a sweat. And you go 'wow, this is one guy you don't wanna mess with. But these battles are not really important, and they are there to show Seph's power. Now, storyline balancing. In any story, there needs to really be balance. It is not an easily definable thing, but you may recognise it from experience. Have you ever read a fic where an original character appears, then turns out to be the brother/sister of a canon character, have some undocumented/ancient/impossible power, be amazingly good looking, have no personality faults, is liked by all the other characters, and has the most desirable canon character hopelessly in love with them? I have, in the animorphs section. I read it so long ago, I doubt it is still there, and I have forgotten the name. But it had ever characteristic mentioned above. And these fics annoy you, don't they? But, there is a fine line. 

Family to a canon character may be a trigger to flashbacks about a mutual childhood, or something. An undocumented/ancient/impossible power can add interest to the story, if used in moderation. Amazingly good looking is ok, if that's your preference. Movie good guys are rarely ugly, are they? Likeability is ok; if character conflict is not something you like to write. And if the romance is written properly and with verisimilitude, even the final one can be acceptable. All of the criteria hinge on preference, setting and writing ability. And judgement. A _lot_ of judgement. So anybody, anybody out there who has ever thought about this, and really took interest and identified with the above rant/theory, I thank you. I wrote this, because I felt like writing it. But if I have helped anyone out there, then I have done something, shared something. Anybody who actually cared enough to read that, and either disagreed or agreed, and who feels like corresponding can mail me. But I think I'm safe from mountains of fan mail :) My address is at the bottom of this chapter.

I'm also interested to know if there are many/any Zidane/Mikoto fans out there. Or even any Mikoto fans at all? I've had a bit of feedback from people about Eiko/Zidane, and seen a few fics out there. Bring on the alternative relationships!!!I wonder if anyone there has ever considered an alternative lemon? But even though my mind is very open, a Eiko/Zidane lemon that doesn't age the characters would be on the wrong side of the bad taste line! 

Anyone who has been skipping my random rants, stop scrolling now…

Now, a bit about the actual fic to come! I'm placing the majority of the action eight years after the game's end. This places Eiko at 13, and therefore Zidane is 23; Dagger is 23; Vivi is 15; Quina doesn't matter and Freya and Amarant are just some random adult age. Their age doesn't really matter, suffice the say that it is perfectly legal for them to drink, smoke and…ahem, let's keep at _least_ the A/N clean, shall we. But legality of various things normally doesn't worry me, except maybe in an Eiko/Zidane… This age thing may seem a little trivial, but it's the kind of thing you may like to know, when considering emotional reactions, appearance, attitude, etc.

Now, location…Zidane is _tentatively _living in Alexandria castle with Dagger. Not to say there is anything wrong with the relationship, but they're not married, and are a little unsure of what is going on. Eiko is with Hilda and Cid, and is a relatively normal teenager. Loud, and unruly. Vivi, for the sake of not further complicating the plot, has also moved in with Cid and Hilda. He is a little quiet to be a normal teenager, but this obviously does not worry his adoptive parents. Amarant is doing random jobs in Treno, and Freya is rebuilding Burmecia. Quina is travelling the world, looking for food (obviously). Steiner is in the service of Dagger, doing his job. This also applies to Beatrix. Mikoto (If you've skipped the rest, the fic may surprise you a little) is living in a small house in Alexandria, and has embraced the culture and lifestyle of Gaia (like Zidane, but he didn't really have a choice). Tantalus are in their fixed up theatre, in Lindblum. Anyone I forgot, or who are not really important enough.

The relationships in this fic are not really provocative in any way (strange for me). Even though there is only one solid and substantiated canon romance (Zidane/Dagger), all the others are the ones most accepted in fanfiction, these being Vivi/Eiko and Amarant/Freya. I will not reveal what will happen exactly though. That would ruin the fun :P Just because it is in writing here, doesn't mean things are set in concrete. I think I'm almost finished now… Due to a lack of character development, I have had to make some stuff up, _especially_ when it comes to Mikoto. Feel free to use any concepts/backgrounds from this fic in your own, as well as the original character that may or may not appear… Don't worry about credit or stuff too much, other than a bit of disclaimer, please. The reward for me would not be credit, but just to see that someone out there likes my ideas! So if you do use something, let me know somehow, so I can read you fic! The things I have invented are a few things pertaining to Madain Sari, the summoners, Terra, and anything I forgot. This is _not_, however, an Alternate Universe. I just explained a few things, and added things for my purposes. Anything that was in the game, stays. Reading this has been very useful to you, trust me, as I hope that further fics later than this one will be set in the same universe. Thanks for bearing with me everyone, you can now proceed to the…Prolouge!!!

My email is [Zidane_San@hotmail.com][1]

   [1]: mailto:Zidane_San@hotmail.com



	2. 

Prophecy

Prophecy 

Prologue: The Book Of The Summoners.

Before the fall of Madain Sari, there was a great city. The Race of the summoners were superior to all, their knowledge was unbounded. Among their numbers, there were few who had the gift of foresight. But as with all who bear this gift and burden, they only knew what came to them. They could not necessarily interpret what the stars sent. So, to leave to task to the great scholars who would come after them, their scribes bound a great book, with gilded pages, and bound with the finest gold. The craftsmanship was unsurpassed by any which had come before, or would come again. And the purpose of this book was the preservation of the dreams of truth, so that further generations could benefit from the knowledge of their ancestors. The seers gathered to the great library, the place of the scribes, and one by one, recited their prophecy. They ranged from the young to the old, the athletic to the infirm. But all were women. The task took years, and the scribes devoted much time to the perfect inscriptions. And when the task was complete, the book was placed on a pedestal, for the inscription of the future dreams. The prophecies in the book were diverse, ranging from the mundane to the indecipherable. But one stood out greatly, as it was among the ones that did not make sense. But it was recited to the mother of a small girl, as her daughter was dying of a fever. The girl had never spoken before, and would never speak again. But in the last moments of her short life, she dreamed. Gripped by the fever, the gift rose within her, and she was gripped by a fit. A strange voice emitted from her lips, one that was clarion clear, and not that of a small dying girl. And this voice proclaimed to all a message which none could understand, but still inspire fear in all. And the words it spoke were these:

After the time of danger, a period of peace will grace the world. All will rejoice, even the displaced ones, and those who should not be. 

_Those who fought, the Legacy, the Deceived, the Orphan, the Loyal One, the One Who Should Not Be, the Failed Warrior and the Wolf, form the Eight.And the Eight, those to whom all will be grateful, will rest in this time of peace, and time will pass. Until the number of years has passed, the number which is sacred to the gods, as they number this. Then shall the devourer arrive, and bring with him a host of the foul. The foul host dwell where none other may be, and here they will hide until they are ready. _

_They are the bane to all life, and their minds harbour no thought other than violence. Their power will be unsurpassed by even the nation of the castle, or the nation of the cleaver ones. They are the ones who will have been feared by those who surpass the callers of spirits. But the third legacy of the fallen race shall join the eight. Also shall the descendant join them, and they shall number ten. And the balance of gods will increase, so they too will number ten, as that is the way._

But the devourer shall then ready his standard of terror, and his minions will prepare their arms, and many will be sent to trouble the world. He shall then unleash a plague upon the very earth, and the rock itself will be imperilled. But the holy Ten must take the chariot of diamonds, and travel like no other. They must find the Dormant Ones, on the ravaged plain. Then shall the sleepers awake, and the destiny of the worlds become linked, as was foreordained since the beginning. The Dormant Ones will learn much from the Descendant, and this knowledge will aid the Legacies. And the Legacies shall come of age, and take up the mantle of the Dormant Ones. Then the Ten will return to where they left, and meet the Devourer in his keep. Then shall the final battle be fought, and the outcome shall be left to the cruel talons of fate. And one will be snatched into the talons, and all will fear for them. But the Holy Ones must not falter, or they shall fail. If the Ten overcome the Devourer, then all will return to the way they were, and peace will reign again. But if the Devourer is victorious, then fire shall rain, and the world be burned, 'till none may be sustained. 

And so the voice spoke, and the girl was no more. All trembled, as none understood the voice that spoke. But the scribes recorded the Word in the Book, as they had always done. 

_ _

_ _


	3. 

Prophecy

Prophecy 

Chapter One: The Calm…

He was jerked out of sleep by a shout, his instincts yanking him out of sleep. He sat up, and looked over to Dagger, white as a sheet, and also sitting up. He calmed the rush up adrenalin that had swelled up in him, and put his arm around her. "It's ok now" he comforted "Just a dream. Was it the same one again?" She relaxed a little "It's always the same one, Zidane." "Why don't you tell it to me, Dagger. It always feels better if you tell someone. And by the morning, it never seems as scary." She nodded and continued. "I was on a boat, and huge waves were swelling up around me. There was a person in the boat with me, a woman. She was near death, injured in the storm we fled. And all she said was 'the book, the book'. And then she turned to me, and her eyes flashed crimson. 'You didn't save it. Nobody did. It lies there. You should have saved it! Fool! Then her face was split by a demonic grin, and she cackled, and coughed up blood. Then she slumped, and died. But I know that didn't happen. My mother shielded me to the end. Somehow I know that it was all a dream, nothing more. But the laugh, and the eyes…God, the eyes!" she broke into a fit of sobbing, and Zidane cradled her head in his hands, murmuring comfortingly. "Just a dream. Like you said, just a dream." She pulled his tail to her, and lay there, softly stroking it, like a scared child would a comforter. She was soon sleeping again, and he smiled. He settled back down, and fell asleep quickly. But his sleep, this time, was restless. He saw the burning of terra, the falling of its great trees. A stern, female voice in his head overlaid the whole scene. _This will not happen again. I won't let it. Never. Your task is ironic, compared to your purpose. But your task is set, and you cannot avoid it. We are power, but only in our kingdom. We need you. Be ready… _

He woke with a start. Sunlight was streaming in the window, and Dagger was sleeping soundly, now with a smile on her face, and still gently holding his tail. Her eyes fluttered open. "You were right, Zidane. It's always fine in the morning. Thankyou" She sat up, and kissed him on the cheek. "Come on. Breakfast should be ready. They left the room together, and made their way to the dining room.

¨¨¨

She sat up and stretched, then brushed her purple hair out of her eyes. She climbed out of her bed, and walked into to the small ensuite. She walked over to the basin, and splashed water on her face. She picked up a brush, and made a token effort to brush her hair. It was not really necessary, as her hair only just fell past her ears. She parted her hair around the small horn on her forehead, and stomped rather clumsily over to her wardrobe. There was a pink dress with white lace on a hanger on the door. She took this off the handle, and dropped it on the floor. She opened the doors, and instead took out a pair of faded jeans, and a tattered old T-shirt. Hilda _never _gave up trying to make her into a proper lady. That could wait. She got dressed, and ran out the door, and leaped down the stairs. 'It's an age stage', her adoptive parents kept saying. "When's Breakfast?" she shouted.

¨¨¨

He found himself rather rudely awakened, by a series of thumps coming from the stairwell. He smiled, and ran a hand through his short hair. Eiko was as loud as always, he thought, and smiled. As always, the nightmares of the night were banished by the light, and he had almost forgotten about them. They weren't all bad, he remembered with a smile, which was slightly guilty. A certain loud person had been arousing new feelings in him recently. Cid seemed to have noticed, and to his embarrassment, frequently made friendly jokes on the topic. Vivi had missed a few important parts of childhood, and only now had understood a few major things in life. Eiko, thank god, had not caught on. He was entirely unsure what her thoughts on the topic were, but he had recently noticed her furtively staring at him a fair bit. He had grown into quite a handsome young man of 15, and a few of the more courageous kitchen girls often tried to strike up conversation. But Eiko, well… He knew they had a close bond, but it was the kind of bond formed by a shared task, or reliance in battle. 

Eiko, on the other had, was already causing chaos among the squires and apprentices, even at 13. She was tall and lithe, with a killer smile. Those who could get over her peculiarities often fell helplessly and futilely in love. But her insistence to wear male clothes was driving Hilda mad. "You may one day become ruler of Lindblum. Does Gaia need yet _another_ strange queen?" said Hilda often, but to no avail. Eiko was Eiko. He shook his head, and made his way down the stairs.

¨¨¨

She sat at the window, just woken up.Sleep was a new concept to her at first, but on Gaia it was necessity. But these dream were new to her, and she was troubled, tail sweeping restlessly. She saw a man, taking armour out of a gilded chest in a cave. A female voice had echoed in her head: _You must awaken, and take up the mantle of Terra. The time is soon, and you must be ready. Your gifts will awaken, and you must learn to use them. Ant they are unique to your race, and only your kind among genomes are suited. None may teach you, for the only other knows not either. The burden is yours alone. Be ready. Be ready, for there is no other way. _

Then she had woken, and the dream was banished. But she felt a strange urge to go to the palace, for no reason she could explain. She left her small house, and locked the door behind her, then set off towards the dock. The boatman greeted her. "Hey you look like that guy in the palace…Zidane, or whatever. You even have a weird-ass tail like him. You his sister?" he enquired. She though for a moment. Technically, she was. But this guy annoyed her, so she decided to scare him a little. "Yeah, if being engineered in the same lab counts, by the same evil guy, for the same purpose. That purpose being to destroy Gaia…" " Jesus Christ! You the one responsible for the weird stuff that screwed this place up? And why the hell is your brother in the god damned palace?" he shouted, scared and surprised. "Don't worry, bigot. We're over that now. But destroying you might just be fun. The palace, please. Quickly, or you might find a large dragon when you go home." She was enjoying herself now, even though she was completely powerless and defenceless. The dream came back into her mind, and she wondered for a moment, as the boatman paddled at record speed to the palace. She jumped off, and stared daggers at him. He paddled away again in fear. She walked up to the gate and the knights stopped her. "You Zidane's sister? I guess we let you in" She rolled her eyes, and strode into the palace. She walked up to the dining room, where she guessed Zidane would be at this time. She glared at some more knights, and pre-empted them. "Yes, I'm his sister, and you'd better let me through." They looked to each other, then stepped aside. She entered the door, and saw Zidane sitting at a table, talking to Dagger. It looked as if they had just finished breakfast. She cleared her throat. Zidane turned, noticing her. "Hi!" he exclaimed cheerfully. He noticed the look on her face, and became serious. "Can you get Dagger to make a royal order, proclaiming that the next person to ask me wether I'm your sister shall be tortured horribly?" she said, trying to keep control. Dagger and Zidane just started laughing. "You seem pretty annoyed…Sis." He said, still laughing. She smiled, and cheered up. "Don't take things so personally, Mikoto." Dagger chided. "Zidane only just stopped explaining to every knight and guard that 'yes, he did have business in the palace.' Intelligence is not needed to become a soldier, it seems…" Mikoto smiled again "So it seems. I'm not entirely sure why I came here. I just kind of came out of impulse. It might have had something to do with a weird dream I had last night." Dagger and Zidane both paled considerably "Dream?" they said, almost in concert. "Yeah. Some guy putting on armour in a cave, and a voice told me to be ready. And some other stuff about a gift, unique to genomes like us. And the voice said you would receive this gift, too. Well, it didn't actually say those words, but that's what it meant. I think. Why do you two look so worried about dreams?" Zidane looked puzzled. "Well, Dagger had a nightmare, where the was on a boat with her mother. This actually happened, but in the dream there was a demonic aspect to her. I dreamed, and saw the fall of Terra again. But there was a voice in my head to. And it said something about being ready, too…" Now it was Mikoto's turn to look puzzled. " have a bit of a theory that needs checking…" Dagger said, and continued "Eiko and I share a weak telepathic bond, after that stuff with Alexandria castle. I'll get her to come here, and bring Vivi. This just might be serious…" Dagger stared blankly for a moment. "They're coming. Should take them about 15 minutes, by airship." She told them. 

Cid moped about the now huge airship dock/workshop in Lindblum, which housed yet another skeletal airship. Airship technology had progressed greatly, since the discovery of the Invincible. Unfortunately, only the study of the ship's secondary drive had ever been successful. It looked as if it would take quantum leaps in Gaia's technology to even find out what most things did. The steering controls were one exception. At least they knew a bit about what they did. But every scientist who had tried to use them had passed out on the spot, and one had died, blood leaking out of his ears. Yet Zidane had never had any problem. It seemed the human mind was poorly suited for the contact of the ship's artificial mind. They were yet to find any manual controls whatsoever. But for some reason, the controls had no adverse affect on Vivi, and Eiko had experienced some faint, and primitive, conversations with the ship. Eiko had told the researchers that the ship had been pleased, and very surprised. This had came as a shock to Cid and his engineers. What manner of race could create not only Artificial Intelligence, but also give this intelligence a personality, and a capacity for emotion. Cid was frustrated and saddened by the fact that this was the only airship he could never possibly work out. If its creators were alive, which they weren't, and willing to help, which they wouldn't be, then a new age would come to Gaia. Cid's dream was to one day have a society, not unlike the one before the fall of Terra, what he understood of it. He had funded a facility to be built at Oeilvert, the Terra Facility. It was still in the construction phases. But he hoped to study the recordings in those mysterious faces, and maybe fix some of the broken ones, to hear more. But these would only tell him what was out of is reach. He sighed. Then he heard loud clanking noises, as someone ran down the catwalks. He could just hear the more reserved footsteps of another. Why bother turning? He thought to himself. He knew exactly who they were. He heard a crash, followed by a long burst of cursing. He turned around. "What did I tell you, Eiko? Don't run on the catwalks." He chided, but smiled a little. She grinned, but was holding her leg. "Your scientists are always leaving stuff around!" she complained, pointing to an upended chair. "Anyway, Dagger told me and Vivi to go to Alexandria. Something has come up, and they want some confirmation. Can you take us there?" Cid looked puzzled. How did she contact you?" Eiko only just tapped her forehead. Cid looked even more puzzled "Note that down, Thompson. It might further our Invincible studies" Cid was _always_ at work. And whenever anything strange happened, no matter how trivial, it was noted down. The Invincible was an obsession of his. "Well…" Cid said "We'd best be off. Come on, you two. They headed over to the Infinity, the product of his Invincible research. Fast as hell, but fairly normal, except for the design. He'd let Eiko design the basic shape of this one. At first, he was just planning on letting her draw one, but using a different design altogether.It turned out rather well, so he used hers, in the end. Not only was she quite an artist, but a budding engineer, as well. Must be the company she's been keeping, he thought, grinning. They waked up the gangway, into the strangely organic looking ship. He had no idea what had inspired Eiko to design it this way, with no sharp, or even flat, surfaces. It was also a pale blue, for some reason Eiko had never bothered to tell him. He wondered, though, what she had seen on her short stay on Terra, and made the fair, and correct, assumption that something there had been her inspiration. He turned down the corridor to the bridge, and sat down in the control seat. He's spared no expense, and the chair was amazingly comfortable, and done with leather. 

Unfortunately, the ship was new, and he was the only one who entirely knew how it worked. But he had taught his children enough to do the minimal amount to fly the ship. On a skeleton crew, the ship still required 10 people. So with only three, the weapons were offline. That was one thing he had insisted on putting in, and was rather proud of it. He may have revolutionised weaponry, with an adaptation of the Invincible's Secondary drive. It fired small, explosive projectiles, propelled with a small engine. He called them rockets, and they were now fitted to his entire air force's ships. If anyone started a war, they would most likely live to regret it. He gave the signal to Vivi, who controlled most of the external devices Cid had fitted. Vivi set off the alarms, that warned people in the dock of takeoff. That was a _major _problem with this new engine. The ship released from the dock, and sped off to Alexandria.

Dagger and Zidane, along with Mikoto, stood waiting at Alexandria's new airship dock when the ship came in. They were all impressed, but especially Mikoto. "They have mastered this technology rather quickly, it seems" she said, to nobody in particular. The side hatch opened, and Eiko ran out, and hugged Dagger. Dagger smiled. Eiko had changed little, it seems. Apart from now being up to Dagger's eye-level, as opposed to waist! "Nice to see you again, Eiko" she said, fondly. Then Cid and Vivi emerged from the door, at a more reserved pace. "Nice to see you both again" said Cid. "You king yet, Zidane? Dagger and Eiko laughed, but Zidane just blushed a little "We're getting there, Cid." Zidane said, only a little uncomfortably. "Nice ship" Zidane said, changing the subject, quickly. The diversion worked, but not quite the way Zidane wanted. It seemed they would be stuck here for quite a long time…

¨¨¨

A young man was cornered by a group of men in an alley. They were the kind of guys who liked to cause trouble, and they had chosen to cause him trouble. It started off as cruel teasing, but stupidly, he answered back. The men had just laughed, and then he made the mistake of insulting one of them, and told them to back off. They started beating him relentlessly. He fought back a little, and kicked one of the men. The man he had kicked was angry, and pulled a knife on him. The knifeman charged, and the poor, beaten man could do little to resist. His vision tunnelled, and all he could see was the knife. As his consciousness faded, he heard a voice ring out in his head. _You must survive this encounter. Use your gifts! _He didn't understand, but then his head and vision cleared. He felt a surge in his mind, and partly understood. "Stop!" he shouted, and waved his hand. The knifeman froze in time, in mid-stride. The other men, who had just stood, watching, swore, and began to advance. He waved his hand again, and they stopped, too. He was shocked. It seemed as if that voice had unlocked a floodgate in his mind, and he could now exert his will upon the world. He understood a little about normal magic, enough to know that this wasn't it. This discovery had saved his life. He walked over to the knifeman, and tried to take the knife. Even with this new power, he could do with a proper weapon. He touched the knife, and it rippled, but he couldn't get hold of it. His brow furrowed. This thing was a lot harder if he tried, it seemed. But still, the knife fell away, and he caught it. I can't leave these guys here, he thought to himself. He unfroze them all, and they continued on with the exact action they had been doing before he stopped them. But then they stopped again, naturally this time. "What the hell? You got my knife. Give it here, little boy. Before I use my next one…" Threatened the knifeman. Oh shit… Why did I have to be so nice, he thought. He threw the knife, and helped it along a bit. On impact with the knifeman, it made a rather large mess of what used to be his face. The others had seen enough. They ran. Definitely, they ran. He averted his eyes from the mess, and set of towards Alexandria castle. There were a few people who knew quite a bit about this kind of thing. And he was going to speak to someone.

¨¨¨

Zidane heard a knock on the door. "Come in!" he yelled. The door opened, and soldier entered. "Um, Queen, Zidane… There's some weird guy at the docks, and he wants us to let him in. "Your definition of weird is applied to many things by soldiers, it seems…" Mikoto sniggered at this, and the soldier looked a little uncomfortable. "Uh…well, sir…No offence meant to you or your sister, Zidane…" Zidane and Mikoto started laughing, and then the rest of the room joined in. The soldier was looking _really_ uncomfortable now, but he still continued "All I mean is…I've never seen him before, and his clothes are all wrecked, and there's a fair bit of blood on him, sir. Looks like a bad sort, a criminal. Not the type of guy you let into a palace, sir…" Zidane raised an eyebrow, then he and Dagger started laughing again. The poor soldier had a 'oh god, I'm going to get fired for this' look on his face. "Congratulations. You managed to insult the Queen's consort twice, and offend his…sister." They all started sniggering uncontrollably again. "May I suggest, that if you leave the soldiery, I have a friend who you might want to meet. She runs a theatre, in the town. She's been looking for a good comedian for a while now. And from today's performance, you'd go far. Now go let that poor man in" The soldier scurried from the room. The same thought came back to everyone in the room, and they all started laughing again. Not your usual court session. Not your usual court, either…

Minutes later, the man was brought up to the room by a pair of soldiers. The soldiers left, and closed the door behind them. The man walked up, look almost matching the soldiers. Uncomfortable. "You wanted to see me?" prompted Zidane. "Um…yeah." He noticed the appraising look he was getting from Mikoto, and became even more uncomfortable. "Something really…weird…happened today, and you seem to know a lot about that kind of thing…" Everyone cracked up again. The man looked as if he wanted the floor to collapse from under him. Zidane wiped his eyes "Go on, don't mind us. We're in that kind of mood today" The man cleared his throat. "Well, I was mugged today, by a group of thugs… I fought back, and one pulled a knife on me. I was pretty messed up by that time, and thought I was about to die. As he was running at me, I heard some weird voice in my head. It told me that I had to survive, and told me to 'use my power'. At first, I had no idea, what it was talking about. But then, my mind cleared, and I stood up. I felt a kind of surge, and told the guy to stop. And he did. But not like the stop running kind of stop, he froze in mid stride. The other guys advanced, and somehow, I froze them too. I took the knife off the guy, and unfroze them. So the guy pulls another knife on me, and walks towards me. I threw the knife at the guy, and it span way more than it should have. I felt another surge, too. I'll spare the details for the kids in the room, but suffice to say, he ended up _very_ dead. But, I have no idea what's going on. So, I came to you" Zidane seemed worried. "Was the voice a female voice, um…what is your name, anyway?" Zidane asked, puzzled. "Yes, the voice was female…Why? And my name's Mikhael. No surname I know of." He said, finishing with a self-mocking bow. Zidane was now very puzzled. He, Dagger, Eiko, Vivi and Mikoto had all had dreams of some sort, with either an ageless female voice, or a sexless, but demonic, voice. And now this guy had heard the voice, too. Plus, Mikoto had come here on what seemed to be impulse, and so did this guy. This could be leading up to something… "What do you do? For a job, or whatever?" Asked Dagger, trying to make up for Zidane's thoughtful silence. Mikhael blushed a little. "Nothing steady. Odd jobs…Shop stacking, shop thieving, contract killings… Not the kind of guy you expect to get mugged." Eiko's eyes widened "Cool!" she exclaimed excitedly. Mikhael smiled "Watch this one…Never know what she'll turn out like." Then a thought came to him, and he turned to Zidane "Hey, did this girl go with you guys, when you saved the world and all? And that quiet guy over there?" Zidane didn't look up, but said, "Yeah" Mikhael shook his head. "Jeez. He turned to the two. How didja battle? I mean, can't have been anything physical…" He said words fading away. Then, "What the…sorry…She's got a horn? You're one of those summoners, aren't you. Jeez. Not gonna cross you anytime soon!" He finished, a little awestruck. Eiko tried to put on her most nonchalant look, but failed miserably. "You think? I want to learn how to fight properly. What do you use?" Mikhael smiled again. They _really_ gotta watch this kid, he thought to himself. "Opportunism. If it's there, I use it. But I can go without, know a blend of martial arts I've picked up, and mashed together with a load of dirty street fighting tricks. Only one weapon I feel attached to. Crossbow, and believe me, it's one beast of a crossbow. Called the Demon by the guy that gave it to me. Guy was too old, couldn't even draw it back. Gave it to me for helping him. Fires bolts as long as yer arm…" he was interrupted by Zidane. "You seeing a connection here, guys? Because I am. Aside from two of us, we all saved the world last time 'round. Mikoto was kind of there, plus she's garland's third little experiment. I'm either his first, or second. I think first, but not by much. Dagger and Eiko are both summoners. Who knows about Mikhael here, but I bet something weird is going on here. Look at him. Closely. Sorry about this, but I noticed something strange, if you don't mind." Mikhael waved it off. He knew, just nobody noticed. Or didn't bring it up. Must be the second one. It is the kind of thing people would notice. Mikoto say up straight, suddenly "The eyes! They're too green, and the pupils are the wrong shape…why is that familiar?" Zidane thought the same "Yeah, me too. There's another puzzle piece. Why do the eyes seem familiar to us? We' can't even see all the pieces to this puzzle, and we have no idea what it will turn out like. We're slowly finding pieces, but none of them fit together…" Mikhael yawned. As strange as this whole mystery may be, he had no idea what was going on, and he was never one who could stay in one place for too long. He walked out onto the balcony, and nobody seemed to mind. 

Eiko soon followed him. "Bored too, eh?" he asked. "Yeah. Zidane pacing 'round in circles, muttering to himself, Dagger musing over something, Vivi being quiet and shy, and Mikoto doing a perfect 'normal, boring genome' impersonation. Not riveting stuff." Mikhael laughed. He liked this girl, he decided. "What was Terra like?" he asked, out of interest. She grinned "Boring and weird. Nobody there spoke a word that made sense, and had no personality whatsoever." He was interested. "Zidane and Mikoto are genomes too, right? They're not totally emotionless. Well, Zidane's definitely not, and Mikoto was normal enough to keep staring at me…" he grinned at that, and Eiko laughed. "Well, I dunno exactly, but I think those two were special ones. Supposed to help take this world over. Kuja, evil bloke, was also a genome, and some argument back on Terra ended up with Zidane here. Zidane lived a normal life, and forgot everything. Because of the capacity for emotion, he became like us. Mikoto's kind of new to it all, but she seems to be fairly normal. Normally boring, that is" Eiko grinned again. Mikhael was kind of interested in it all, but Eiko said no more on the topic. He took a bit of a stab in the dark "Are you and that Vivi kid a couple? He kinda kept shyly looking at you, and I wondered if you noticed." Eiko laughed. "Couple and Vivi don't belong in the same sentence right now. But yeah, I have noticed his apparent interest." Mikhael continued "Well, strictly from an observers point of view, you are something worth looking at…" he grinned at Eiko, who was now blushing. "I don't mind him, but it kinda annoys me that he doesn't say anything to me. He's a bit shy, I think. Shame, he isn't all that bad looking. If he ever asked me out, or anything… I'd like it, but it isn't gonna happen anytime soon." She grinned. Mikhael could tell she'd wanted someone to talk to about this stuff for quite a while. "Why don't you talk to him? If he's too shy, you gotta make the first move. Start it off as a 'friends' kind of thing, then let things go naturally, and see what happens." He suddenly felt like an older brother, and laughed at the mental picture. "What's so funny?" Eiko asked, curious "Just imagining myself as an older brother. Pretty funny, considering my background." They heard Zidane calling them from the room. "Well, duty calls. But remember what I said about that Vivi guy…" With that, he opened to door and walked back into the room.

" I'm fumbling in the dark here, but I think we should go to Madain Sari. This dream stuff seems to mean something, and Dagger's mentioned a book, in Madain Sari. We should give it a look. Oh…And Mikhael, you're coming. Seems something is going on here, and you're involved. The little group walked back to the airship dock, and headed towards the invincible. The little hatch opened, and they stepped inside. Mikhael fell to the floor, grimacing. "What is this?" he groaned. He felt a magnified version of the surge he felt in the fight, and the pain cleared. He felt a strange intelligence in his head. _Who are you? What are you? _He thought to this intelligence. The thing replied simply. _I am the ship. Zidane may also speak with me. Your abilities make you aware of me more easily. _"Strange." He muttered to himself. "This ship is strange, to say the least. But what are we going to find in a pile of rubble?" Zidane looked a little embarrassed. "Umm. I think there's some sort of book there, but I'm not sure. I'm only working with dreams. But, anything's worth a look." They headed for the bridge, and walked through the doorway. Zidane walked over to the glowing pad. He stood motionless for a few moments, then stepped away. "I love the autopilot!" He said with a grin. The clouds rushed past out the front window. Zidane looked around. Dagger and Mikoto were huddled together, and giggled a little every once in a while. Zidane grinned to himself. Girls talk, he thought to himself. He leaned back against the wall. Eiko and Mikhael were off in a corner, having a very animated conversation. Those two seemed to have become fast friends. Vivi, as usual, was off brooding by himself. Zidane walked over to him. "Hey, what's up?" Zidane asked. "Not much. Wish I had your talent with girls, though…" Zidane grinned. "I wonder why…" he said, mock-teasingly. "Who's the lucky girl? I've got a pretty good idea who…" Vivi blushed. "Eiko." He barely managed to get out. Zidane grinned again. "I guessed right. Well, if you ever need some advice…" Vivi controlled his embarrassment a little "I do need some advice, actually. How do I know if she likes me back?" Zidane, who had been watching Eiko, smiled. "Well, they keep looking at you when they think you won't notice…Like now…" Vivi smiled hopefully. "She is? Really?" "Yep." Zidane confirmed "I think you just got your answer…" The ship glided down through the clouds, to hover just outside Madain Sari. Zidane landed the ship, and moments later, they all walked down the ramp, and through the battered gates. 

"I'm starting to agree with you, Mikhael…" Zidane said, looking around hopelessly. "How are we going to find anything in this pile of rubble?" Mikhael finished his sentence, grinning. Zidane walked over to Eiko. "Just how big is this place, Eiko…" He asked her, not really wanting to know the answer. She shook her head. "Big. Maybe bigger than Alexandria… But if the book you're looking for is the one I think I know something about, we should look around the centre." Zidane looked interested "What is the book you know of, Eiko." "Well…" she said slowly, gathering her thoughts. "There is, or was, a book of prophecies made by the summoners gifted with that power. Seeing as it was mentioned in a dream, I thought…" "Yeah. That makes sense to me, too. The middle is as good a starting place as any" Zidane agreed. They set through destroyed streets, lined by mounds of masonry that were once houses. He found himself walking next to Mikoto. "We screwed this place up pretty good, eh sis." He had subconsciously slipped into that form of address, but Mikoto didn't mind in the least. He had also, over time, accepted fully his heritage, and the things attached to it. Mikoto nodded "Yeah. Look at it. Not many recognisable things standing, is there. Garland deserved the fate you dealt to him. He used us, he killed the people of this city, and he almost did the same to Alexandria." Her face turned thoughtful. "You were with Kuja at the end, weren't you." Zidane nodded "Yeah. He changed so much. Shame he didn't do that earlier. He no longer felt the hate he had for me, his brother. I accepted him as mine. A bittersweet ending, as they say. I left him, and went back to Dagger." He smiled ruefully. "That day, all the nobles who were there would have sworn that we'd marry within the month, if not the week. I'm not sure why we haven't gotten 'round to it, yet." He chuckled "Although technically, we're married already. At Conde Pete, we went through a ceremony to get past to the path behind the town…" Mikoto sighed a little. "You're lucky to have her, Zidane. I wouldn't worry too much about marriage. You're happy now, right? One of the things of this world I've never gotten around to experiencing. Love. I've never found anyone. I've never looked, either. None of the other genomes came close to understanding the concept." " Don't worry about it so much, sis. Not everyone finds love right away. And you're gonna get nowhere if you don't look." Zidane said, then grinned slyly. "Someone else is looking, though…" He said with a nod of his head in the general direction if Mikhael, who was discovering new ways to look at someone without even admitting to himself that he was. Mikoto looked at him out of the corner of her eye, and grinned evilly. She turned round and waved to him, mock-innocently. He took up archaeology, and found an interesting piece of masonry to stare at, while blushing furiously.Zidane laughed, and gave his sister a friendly pat on the back. "I think we're there." He announced, as they arrived at an almost standing dome-shaped building. They stopped, surveying the scene. Zidane heard a strange noise, and cocked his head. It came again. A noise like a hot poker falling into water, he thought. Strange… Mikhael tensed a little. "Guys, something is going on. I can feel tension in the air. Not like an expression, I can literally feel it…" 

The sound came again. Zidane looked worried. "Seems some monster is in there. Probably made a nest… It sounds reptilian, almost. I might be wrong…" Then, as if on cue, two horrors steppe out from behind the rubble. The light heartedness of the walk was gone, all knew what to do. Except Mikoto, who had no idea. "Um…Zidane. They don't look friendly, and I can't do anything about it…" Zidane swore "Damn…Stay close" Mikhael was true to his word; he was a man of opportunistic talents. He took an iron bar from the wreckage, and wielded it. It was about ten feet long, with rusted, jagged edges. Eiko, to the surprise of all other than Vivi, did not take out her flute. She instead stood in a ready position that looked rather painful to hold for more than a few seconds. Yet she managed. Dagger took out her rod, and Vivi a large staff, about as long as Mikhael's lump of iron. Mikhael looked closely at the horrors for the first time, and gulped. They truly were horrors. Slightly insect-shaped, they had chitinous armour that seemed to drink in the light. They were covered in various blades, and had a mouthful of _very_ pointy teeth. Mikhael put on an expression as cold as the iron he held. "Time to party, boys and girls!" 

He charged the beast closest to him, giving it a solid strike with his club. The thing shook its head, and bared its teeth. He jumped back, as the beast swiped a claw at him. He jabbed the bar at the beast's softer belly, and broke the skin. Black, slightly corrosive blood spattered the ground. But it was a flesh wound, and the monster fought on. He swung at it's leg, and heard a satisfying _crack_ as whatever hold the thing together snapped. The leg hung limp. The monster was angered, and fought viciously. Mikhael found himself retreating…

Eiko was fighting calmly, or as calmly as possible. Calm was the way she had been taught. Anger and fear only caused mistakes. Fatal ones, in a real fight. Which was now! She had found her punches to be of little effect, and had switched over to only kicks. Any throws or moves relying on weak-points were useless; she had no intention of grappling with the fiend, nor knew its anatomy. She leaped, and crescent kicked it, hitting right at the jaw. She heard a satisfying _snap_ as it's neck broke, and it fell to the dirt, twitching. She looked over to the other creature, where Zidane was slicing it up pretty good. But he was getting nowhere. Mikhael pulled away from the fight, grinning, and stared blankly for a moment. Then black gore spattered over all present, along with a pitifully small amount of brain matter. Hopelessly stupid creatures, it seemed. Mikhael was grinning from ear to ear. "It worked!" he breathed, excitedly. "But I couldn't have managed a smarter creature. Still, it worked…" Dagger didn't seem as pleased. "Dammit. I bet this stuff doesn't wash out…" Mikoto only raised her eyebrows, and smiled a little. Eiko headed towards the dome structure "Well, what are you waiting for? This is what we came for, right?" The others soon followed.

They stepped into the shadow, and waited for their eyes to adjust. They looked around. Rotted shelves in various states of disrepair lay about, with tattered books strewn around randomly. They stepped over mounds of dust, which was more dirt by now. Behind a still standing bookshelf was a family of rats, which skittered away as soon as the party was sighted. "Eww…" said someone. They rounded a bend, and saw a pedestal. Still standing, it supported a massive book. The book was still there, intact. The years that had been put into the binding and every page showed, and had kept the book alive and intact. Mikoto walked over to the book, and opened it. The spidery script inside was unreadable. "Huh?" Eiko walked over, and peered over Mikoto's shoulder. She breathed in sharply. "Temple Sarian!" she exclaimed. Everyone just looked at her. She blushed. "Sorry. Temple Sarian was the language of priests, only learned by the members of the faith. One of the first parts of becoming an acolyte was to learn the script, to read this book. This is the book of prophecy, the centre of Sarian faith. Although we were known for summoning abilities, we placed quite little importance on them. A seer was seen as near-royalty. And every prophecy, no matter how mundane, was recorded…" Zidane coughed politely "We didn't really come for a history lesson. I need a yes or no answer for this…Can you read it?" Eiko hesitated, and replied: "Yes. Just. I learned a bit. But it will take me a while to find anything of importance…" Dagger looked puzzled "Why?" Eiko smiled helplessly "Well, this one says: 'There will be a dry spell, and the beasts of the field will die…' Most of these are mundane, and useless to us. Try to relax, everybody. This will take a while…"

Mikhael was aimlessly walking around the wrecked library, seeing what else was intact. He picked up a book, with a faded red cover. The title was unreadable, so he opened the book. He took one look at the page, and blushed a little, snapping the book shut. He held it like a dead fish, trying to find a place to put it back. He heard Mikoto come up behind him. "What's that book? Looks in ok condition, to me…" she inquired, curious. "You really don't want to know what's in there, Mikoto…" He warned. She shrugged, and took the book from him. She opened it, and her reaction was strangely similar to his… "Why would they write a book about that? I thought it was the kind of thing that… came naturally…" She dropped the book, and moved to another shelf. Most of the books there were undamaged, and she could read many of the titles on them. She beckoned over to Mikhael "These people wrote books about the strangest things… Desert Delights: 100 edible plants, and how to cook them; How to raise an obedient child; These people had way too much time on their hands." She laughed. She sneezed, and looked into a shaft of sunlight. It seemed there was more dust than air "The dust is getting to me in here. Let's go outside" The stepped over the broken shelf-bits and book pieces, and into the desert sun. Mikoto found a stone block in the shade, and sat down. Mikhael followed her. They just sat for a while, neither of them saying anything. Mikoto turned to him "Have you ever thought why everything seems to be turning out the way it is? I just decided to go to the palace, for no reason I could think of. From what I gather, you did too. We all had dreams involving a stern female voice, or a demonic rasping one. The former saved your life in that fight, by telling you what to do. And your powers only suddenly became apparent…" Mikhael nodded "Yeah…" Mikoto continued on. "It seems like something is supposed to happen, and it's going to, wether we like it or not." She paused for a moment. "Do you believe in gods?" she asked him, tentatively. To her surprise, he thought, and answered seriously. "Kind of. I think I accept the fact that there might be someone out there. But why would they be special? Wouldn't they just be another race, like you're a Genome, and I'm Gaian? They might have unimaginable powers; they might be immortal. But why would they feel any responsibility towards us? Even if you accept the creation theory, you, more than anybody but Zidane,know that creation of a race is not only confined to gods. Garland did it, and he thought of himself as above the genomes. But the original Terrans, to resurrect their planet, created him. Then down the line, Kuja created the black mages. And felt that he had godly power over them. But I've never seen a god, and I've no reason to believe that they'd care all that much.

I've never seen any evidence, no miracles to bolster their claim. I've seen a lot against the interventionist theory." He paused, and looked a little depressed, but continued.

" I knew a girl once. She was pretty, and I guess we were in love. But some heartless bastard, to cowardly to some after me, decided to get back at me for double-crossing him. I came home and found what colder people would call an object lesson. An indifferent person would call it a mess. I call it an atrocity that I could never forget. I swore on the spot to hunt the man down, and show him the honourable way of dealing with a grudge. But god, when I came in the door, nothing could have prepared me for the display I saw. And, you know what's worse? He left a note, written in her blood. It said: _Everything has a price. You just paid yours._" Mikhael started sobbing uncontrollably. Mikoto put her arm around him, not caring about what message is might give him, or anyone else who saw. She brushed a long lock of hair out of his eyes. He turned his head, and looked her in the eyes. Out of impulse, she reached out and touched his cheek. "You can't undo the past." She said softly All you can do is pick up the pieces, and go on with your life. And even if that memory stays with you for the rest of your life… Other ones will slowly fade it." He took her hand. "Thankyou." he whispered hoarsely, and leaned in and kissed her. She didn't resist. Clapping came from back towards the library. Mikoto turned to see Eiko, who beckoned them over.

"Come on you two! I think I've found something!" Eiko was surprised, happy for them, and jealous all at the same time. Why didn't these kind of things happen to her? I know why, she thought to herself. Because the guy I want is clueless, and to shy to make any moves. Mikoto and Mikhael both looked confused, and a little embarrassed. The three of them stepped through a crumbled hole in the wall, back into the library. Lying on top of the book was a piece of paper, with almost indecipherable handwriting scrawled all over it. "Read it" prompted Eiko, thrusting it into Mikoto's hands. Mikoto took a while to get use to Eiko's horrible handwriting, then managed to read through the bits of a promising passage Eiko had managed to translate partially. It didn't look very bright…

"Hmm…" She said, reading through the prophecy. "It says: 

After the time of danger, a period of peace will grace the world. All will rejoice, even the displaced ones, and those who should not be

_Those who fought, the Legacy, the Deceived, the Orphan, the Loyal One, the One Who Should Not Be, the Failed Warrior and the Wolf, form the Eight.And the Eight, those to whom all will be grateful, will rest in this time of peace, and time will pass…_

That doesn't make any sense to me… How many of you fought Necron? Eight, wasn't it… I'll keep going…_ _

_…until the number of years has passed, the number which is sacred to the gods, as they number this. Then shall the…_This word's missing_…arrive, and bring with him…_This sentence isn't finished_. The foul host dwell where none other may be, and here they will hide until they are ready. _This thing's so cryptic, even if all the words were there it still wouldn't make any sense.

_They are the bane to all life, and their minds harbour no thought other than violence. Their power will be unsurpassed by even the nation of the castle, or the nation of the cleaver ones. They are the ones who will have been feared by those who precede even the callers of spirits. But the third legacy of the fallen race shall join the eight. Also shall the descendant join them, and they shall number ten. And the balance of gods will increase, so they too will number ten, as that is the way. _It says that whatever a legacy is, there's three of them. What else is there three of, and were left behind by a fallen race?" Zidane snapped his fingers "Genomes! Maybe this refers to you, being the third. And I guess you have joined the eight of us, making us nine. Not all of us are present, but…And I suppose there's ten of us, now Mikhael's here. Is he the Descendant? The Descendant of who? Keep reading…"

"But the … shall then ready his standard of terror, and his minions will prepare their arms, and some many will be sent to trouble the world. He shall then unleash a … upon the very earth, and the rock itself will…. Missing. Huh? But the holy Ten must take the … of diamonds, and travel like no other.They must find the Dormant Ones, on the ravaged plain. Then shall the … awake, and the destiny of the worlds become linked, as was foreordained since the beginning. Gaia and Terra? The Dormant Ones will learn much from the Descendant, and this knowledge will aid the Legacies. And the Legacies shall come of age, and take up the mantle of the Dormant Ones. That might mean us, Zidane. And maybe you, Mikhael. But who are the Dormant Ones? Then the Ten will return to where they left, and meet the …in his keep. Then shall the final battle be fought, and the outcome shall be left to the cruel talons of fate. And one will be snatched into the talons, and all will fear for them. Doesn't sound nice. Probably won't be completely accurate, though. But the Holy Ones must not falter, or they shall fail. If the Ten overcome the…, then all will return to the way they were, and peace will reign again. But if the … is victorious, then fire shall rain, and the world be burned, 'till none may be sustained. Nice ultimatum, eh? Hope this isn't talking about us, sounds like too much trouble in one place. There's one thing that crops up a lot. It seems to be a name, or an object…" Eiko looked at the paper, then the book. "Ah, that word. I think it means gourmand, but the inflections are kind of wrong. More angular. In this script, the same set of symbols, or word, can change, depending on how they're written, how much pressure is put on the paper, the order of the strokes. That's what makes it hard to learn. But if the word for 'body' is written with pointy bits instead of round ones, it means 'corpse'. 'Gourmand' is more rounded than this, so…" Mikhael grinned a little. "So, this guy could be a bad chef? A cannibal? A greedy eater?" Eiko thought for a second. "No. Angularity adds a sinister tone to a word. Not just a negative one." Zidane went into the closest thing he had to leader mode. 

"Ok. Let's just assume for now that this is talking about us. We're supposed to be ten before anything happens, and maybe nothing will progress until we are. And I have a feeling that everything here is supposed to happen. So the rest of the ten will turn up of their own accord. In layman's terms… Time to kick back and relax until the others get here. Those names at the start all seemed to be coded versions of others, more traits than proper names. If we could work out who was who, still assuming this is about us, we might be a bit forewarned. But regardless, let's find a place to sleep and wait." He grinned ruefully, and waved his hand at the translation "It might be our last chance for a while!"


	4. ...Before the storm.

Chapter 2:

Chapter 2:

…Before the storm…

Mikhael kicked a stone across the shell of a house. He was bored, hot and confused. He thought just waiting for the others to turn up was a little fatalistic, but Zidane was more testing a theory than anything else. Plus from what he had heard, finding Quina would be nearly impossible. 

So, they waited. Waited in a city of rubble, and scorpions. He had learned to check his boots before he put them on in the mornings the hard way.

What confused him more was all this prophecy stuff, and what was going on. Or more, what may be going to happen.

He sat down on the sandstone floor. He wasn't even game to start thinking about the third worry. It, or more she, was something he was not prepared to think about right now. That thought was something he tried to ignore entirely.

He settled back in a pile of soft sand that had built up in the corner, and began to drift off to sleep.

He awoke only a few minutes later, and sat back up. Suddenly he felt a strange lurch, and he was in a kitchen. 

Stone shelves with earthenware jars lined the walls, and a mother warned her child not to touch a pot bubbling over the stove. A dog barked from out in the street.

He lurched again, and it was gone. He was back in the shell of rubble. Must have drifted back off to sleep, he thought. But now he looked more closely at the room around him. 

Strangely, there was a jagged line of broken stone at an even height around the walls. There was also a pile of stone against one wall that may have once been something. He braced his hands against the ground to get up, and yelped in pain. A shard of pottery had jabbed him. He threw the offending object away, and stood up.

He sniffed the air, and caught the scent of a cooking stew. Lunch must be ready, he thought, and dashed back to camp.

When he arrived, he discovered he was only partly right. A plate of fruit and vegetables gathered from down near the river was being prepared by Dagger and Zidane. "I thought I smelled stew," he said, a little disappointed. Dagger gave him a puzzled look. "Stew? You must have imagined it.

He saw Eiko and Vivi walk into their makeshift camp from the library. He grinned. It seemed Eiko now had the right idea…

Vivi was happier than he had been in years, though hid didn't admit that much to himself. Everything seemed to be going right. He reached up to the shelf, and pulled down another dusty book.

Eiko closed the book she had been flipping through. She looked at him. 

"What happened with everything at the end of the trouble we had, before you came to the palace? I never really heard all that much. Wasn't there a…" She asked. 

Vivi finished her sentence. "A note?" He grinned, looking a little embarrassed. "Yeah, I kind of got a little caught up in my own fears. I got a sick, and immediately assumed I was going to die. I left a flowery and poetic farewell, only to wake up the next morning feeling better. I was actually a little disappointed." 

Eiko had to stifle a laugh at that. "Well, I'm still here now…" 

Eiko thought for a moment, then spoke again. "What about the mages you created, your children, in a way…"

Vivi shook his head sadly. "I could not create others like me without committing an atrocity." 

Eiko looked puzzled "What do you mean?" Vivi sighed "I am, or was, totally human. Until… With the other mages, mist was the main ingredient. I was created with a base." Eiko looked a little sick "You mean they…" He nodded "Yeah." They stood up and wandered towards the outside.

Mikhael looked towards the library, and saw Eiko and Vivi walk into their makeshift camp from the library. He frowned. Something was going on…

"Déjà vu" he muttered to himself

"What?" Mikoto said, right behind him. He almost leaped out of his skin.

"Don't scare me like that! Anyway, I said 'Déjà vu'."

"Huh? Weird…" Mikoto said, looking a little spooked

"Let me guess," Mikhael hazarded "You saw Eiko and Vivi leave the library, in the same way, twice?"

She swallowed "Yes. This is one of those things that we need to speak to everyone about, I think. I had a flash of this place being lived in before, too."

Now it was Mikhael's turn to be worried. "So did I…"He waked over to Zidane and Dagger, and explained the situation.

Zidane, in turn, looked a little worried as well. "I didn't see Eiko, I was busy. But Dagger and I both had flashbacks…"

Eiko, who had come over halfway through the conversation, spoke. "Maybe this has something to do with the Prophecy…" She froze mid sentence, and almost whispered "The Plague!"

Everyone looked apprehensive. "What does this mean?" asked Dagger

Eiko gulped "Something is wrong with time…And maybe a few other fundamental things."

"Like what?"

"Look over there, Dagger. Do you recognize that girl watching us? About your age…"

"What girl-- huh? She looks like…me. But—

"She has a horn" Zidane finished "She must be Sarah, the version of you that never left a burning Madain Sari. Even possibility is now warped." 

Sarah faded away. "The images don't last long. For now, at least."

"I think it's about time the others turned up. We need to work out what to do."

Mikhael took this as a dismissal, and wandered back of into the ruins. 

This time he took a closer look around, studying the remnants of the lives of it's previous inhabitants. There were no bodies to be seen; the destruction must have been too quick and powerful. 

Soon after he came to this conclusion, he looked under a pitted stone table. The skeleton of a child was huddled there, dead fingers clutching at the neck of a skeletal dog. A lump came to his throat. Personal killing is one thing, he thought. There you know who you want dead, and have a reason. But this mass destruction knows no target. It kills the innocent without mercy.

He clenched his fists, and kicked at the wall. He suddenly regretted that Garland had died with Terra. He would have enjoyed killing him himself.

He heard footsteps on the stone behind him. He knew who it was without turning. 

Mikoto came up beside him. "What's wrong?" 

He said nothing, but waved his hand at the table. Mikoto investigated, and came back looking sick.

"Another reason for me to hate Garland. I never thought about the people, only the damage. Until now." Mikoto laughed bitterly "At least he suffered the same fate. Cringing as the fire swept around him, burning away his flesh. Kuja's insanity did us all a favor there"

"What was Terra like?" Mikhael asked

"Boring, though then I didn't even understand the concept. We were built as shells, no purpose other than to accept the souls of Gaia. Only Garland would have known the thoughts of the ancients, those who created us and vanished."

"Where did they go?"

"I don't know. The secret died with Garland. Left with whatever they could carry of their civilization, I would expect. Though Garland's pathetic attempts at fatherhood did leave me with information otherwise. They were probably only stories."  
"What did he tell you?"

"He hinted that they were waiting for us to revive their world. I think that it is more likely that he was trying to give me more incentive to perform my duty. Although, with the words of the prophecy… Who knows?"

"Which words?"

"The ones about the Dormant Ones. Though, it would be impossible for them to have slept for so long. Naturally, anyway."

A loud clanking coming closer interrupted them.

"What the hell is that?"

"Nothing dangerous. Just another member of our little group. Steiner."

The walked back to the camp. Mikhael almost reached out to take Mikoto's hand, but pulled back. 

Some things, he thought, are just too complicated.

"My queen! How could you just leave like that, alone? And not telling anyone!"

"Calm down Steiner. I wasn't alone."

"It seems not. But still, you are among very poor company—"

"Don't start on that again. Zidane is almost civilized now…"

"Very well. But isn't that the man my knights stopped at the gateway? Zidane was just a thief. But I asked around, and this man is an assassin!"

"Calm down, rusty. This man is no more dangerous to her highness here than I am" Zidane cut in, defending Mikhael

Steiner looked defeated.

"By the way, have you heard from Quina? Or Freya and Amarant?" Dagger asked him.

"They should be here soon"

True to his word, Freya, Amarant and Quina arrived, walking down the dirt path once called a road.

"You've arrived" Zidane said in greeting

"It would seem that way, wouldn't it" Amarant answered dully 

"Cut that out!" Zidane replied with a grin "How are you, Freya? I haven't seen you for years!"

"Well. Burmecia is slowly returning to the way it once was." She sighed

"Do you still blame yourself?"

Freya said nothing, but the answer was obvious.

"Quina?"

"Me good! Traveled far, discovered many yummy-yummies!"

Zidane laughed. Quina never changed.

"Come through. We've kind of set up a camp here."

He led them through to the camp.

"What exactly is the problem, then?" asked Amarant.

"This prophecy. If it was easier to understand, we would know what we were supposed to be doing."

"Find where we're up to now," suggested Dagger "And see what we're supposed to do next. Then, maybe if we do that, the next bit will become apparent."

"Ok then…" said Zidane, taking a deep breath. 

_But the devourer shall then ready his standard of terror, and his minions will prepare their arms, and many will be sent to trouble the world. He shall then unleash a plague upon the very fabric of the world, and everything shall be imperiled._"

"Ok, what next…"

"_But the holy Ten must take the chariot of diamonds, and travel like no other. They must find the Dormant Ones, on the ravaged plain. Then shall the sleepers awake, and the destiny of the worlds become linked, as was foreordained since the beginning._"

"Nothing makes sense." Said Dagger, a little disappointed. 

Something sprung into Mikhael's mind. "Mikoto…What were you saying earlier. I asked you about your childhood. You were telling me about some story Garland had told you…"

"Terra!" Mikoto almost shouted.

"I think we're missing out on some of this conversation…" complained Zidane.

"Never mind, brother. Let's go!"

They all hurried off to the Invincible, with more than a few people lost and confused.

"How, exactly, do we get there now? The gate at the island was how we got there last time, and that's gone…" asked Zidane.

"Then you mustn't be as smart as we'd thought… Sorry, that didn't come out right."

"Don't worry, keep going"

"OK. Look out that window. Every one of those stars is a sun, and many of those would have planets. Few of them would have life. The reason the stars look small is the distance"

"How big is a sun in the first place?" Eiko asked, curious.  
"Depending, but very big. Hundreds of thousands of miles."

"So… to look that small – "

"–They would have to be very far away. Most of them are so far away that there's no point even measuring it in miles."

"So how far away is Terra?"

"We've always had our shortcut, so we've never bothered to know. But Garland may have had a way, when he owned this ship. Maybe you should talk to it, Zidane"

"I'll give it a try" He said, and focused. _Ship?_

_You called?_

_Yes. We need to find a way to Terra. Can you help us?_

_That's an interesting question, really. I have the capacity, yes. The question you really meant was 'Will you help us'_

_Will you?_

_Yes. I am as much of an instrument of the prophecy as you are._

_You know?_

_Yes. Why will become apparent soon enough._

_Are you acting like this just to irritate me, or are you always like this._

_You decide. We've never really spoken at length before. You've always just ordered me around._

_I have, haven't I. Sorry, I never really thought that you might be intelligent._

_These slips can only be expected in biological life forms. I should know that not all are as perfect as I._

_Shut up. So, can you show us a map or something?_

_Easy. Look at the screen. I will also fade out the walls and roof. You will see the names of stars and planets next to visible objects._

_Thanks_, he thought, opening his eyes again.

"Wow" Said Eiko

"This is quite amazing," said Steiner. Amarant, of course, said nothing.

"There's Terra" pointed out Mikoto. In response, more information appeared next to the star.

"Travel time: 2 days, it says there." read Freya. 

"Let's kick back and relax, then. There are a few double sleeping quarters towards the back of the ship. I'll leave it to yourselves who's sleeping with who…" Zidane announced, grinning.

"Sometimes he disgusts me" muttered Mikoto to Dagger

"I know the feeling" replied Dagger, then followed after Zidane. Mikoto decided that there was some fun to be had, one way or another in staying with Mikhael. It would either, and most likely, cause him extreme discomfort, or possibly have more fun and interesting results. She walked over to him. "Shall we be off?"

His only answer was: "Hell, why not"

Vivi walked over to Eiko. "Would you like to sleep with me?" He asked her. She blushed, and when he realized why, his reaction was much the same. "I didn't quite mean it that way. I meant – "

" – I know what you meant. I'd be happy to." As they walked off together, Eiko shyly slipped her hand into his. For the first time, he didn't get embarrassed, or pull away quickly. They just walked, hand in hand.

Amarant turned to Freya. "You coming?" If she was surprised, she didn't show it. She walked off towards their quarters, Amarant slouching along behind. A slow, victorious smile crept across her lips as they walked away, followed not soon after by the leftovers, Quina and Steiner. Steiner was hoping to as many gods as possible that Quina wasn't female. The after thinking this over for a while, he started hoping Quina was. Quina didn't care less. Leftovers Good!

Mikoto walked up to the door, and it opened with a hiss. The room inside was basic, but serviceable. He was not sure if he was relieved or disappointed that there were two bunks in a niche in the wall. A bright, slightly blue light lit the room from an unknown source. There was a bulkhead door to a small bathroom on one side of the room.

She walked to the bunks, and sat down on the bottom one. She motioned for Mikhael to join her. He sat down next to her, a little uncomfortable.

"Oh stop that," she said, sliding closer to him "What's wrong?"

"I'm confused, is all."

"What is there to be confused about? We both know there's something between us. Let's give it a chance. Besides, even if it's nothing serious, it helps to pass the time"

"What do you mean exactly, by 'passing the time…"

"This." She said, and kissed him. He was caught completely off guard, but recovered quickly enough. He kissed her back, feeling her tongue against his. She ran her hands up to the back of his head, lowering them both down onto the bunk. Things progressed rather quickly from there…

Eiko and Vivi entered the small room. A far cry from the castle, but better than their camp. Looking at the beds, Eiko suddenly felt very tired. The day's events had caught up with her. "I'm going to bed." 

Vivi nodded. "I'm tired too."

"Goodnight" she said, walking over towards the bunks. But she stopped, and walked back.

"Goodnight, Vivi" she said, and reached up and kissed him. His lips felt electric, and her pulse raced. They lingered for a moment, and then broke away.

Goodnight, Eiko" he said, smiling. Why did things always have to go and complicate themselves? Although, he didn't think he minded right now…

¨¨¨

A disembodied voice echoed through the ship "This is your captain speaking—"

_"Zidane, shut up. Wake up everyone"_

Eiko blinked as light flooded the room. She sat up quickly, forgetting there was another bed above her. Her head hit the metal bars fairly hard, and she shouted one of the words she always heard Cid's technicians use. 

She heard laughter coming from above. "Think that was funny?" she inquired, stepping out of the bed.

Vivi was still laughing.

"Ok, that's it" She warned, and climbed up the small ladder to the top bunk, and jumped on him. He stopped laughing soon enough. He started struggling about, but Eiko kept her hold.

"Ok, ok. I give up. Let me down."

Eiko only grinned evilly, leaned down, and kissed him.

"You're full of surprises lately" He said, grinning back

"I know" She said, and kissed him again

"We'd better get up."

"I know." Said Eiko, regretfully. "But I'm going to have a shower first." She nimbly leaped from the top bunk, and walked through the shower door. The bathroom was very small, with a shower cubicle in one corner, a toilet, and a small sink. She closed the door behind her, and locked it. She slipped her worn shirt over her head, and threw it into a corner of the room. She did not wear a bra, because she didn't drastically need one yet, and couldn't bring herself to ask Hilda about it. Cid could be a real irritation sometimes, and these sorts of things gave him endless amusement. Vivi had suffered enough when he had started shaving. And that was Cid's idea in the first place. 

She unbuttoned her jeans, which quickly followed the shirt through the air to the corner. The shower had a proper door, unlike the castle ones, which only had curtains. Lindblum castle had probably the only showers on Gaia at the moment, as only Cid had worked out a reliable way to install them. She wasn't very surprised to see that these showers were a lot more advanced, with a strange pad on one wall. She stepped in, and touched the pad. It came to life in shades of gray, depicting a sliding switch. She touched the switch with her finger, which brought the water down on her completely unexpectedly. It was cold. Freezing cold. She touched the pad again, dragging the switch towards the end. This warmed the water, and she adjusted it to a comfortable temperature. 

Looking at the drain, she only just realized how much she had needed a shower. The sand of the desert had managed to find it's way just about everywhere. The rhythm of the water massaged her into a doze, until a loud banging came from the bathroom door. She came back to her senses, turning off the water and stepping out of the shower. She looked around. "Damn!" she exclaimed.

"What?" came Vivi's muffled reply through the door.

"No towels."

"What would you expect? These haven't been used since the fall of Terra."

"Doesn't mean I'm not allowed to be annoyed. I'm going to have to come out and get one. Promise not to look, ok?"

"Ok.

She unlatched the door, and opened it, all the while attempting to cover herself. She was failing miserably, and Vivi was not entirely true to his promise, mainly because his mind had lost control of the thinking department. Not entirely true was a little understated though…

"Vivi…"

"Sorry. Though it's not something that really needs worrying about. I have known you since you were six."

"Yes, that would be your opinion. But I'm not exactly six anymore, am I. But you're right in one way. I can't exactly walk around huddled over like this. But try not to have too much fun. There's no point in telling you not to look."

She straightened up, and began the process of searching the room. There didn't seem to be any towels anywhere. She kept looking, expecting to find a cupboard concealed somewhere.

"Find one for me, too. I'm having a shower"

"Fine" She replied, preoccupied. She looked carefully, and found a small recessed square in the wall. She pressed it, and a previously undetectable hatch opened. Inside were spare sets of white bed sheets, as well as two towels. She pulled them down, drying herself off with one. She went over to the bathroom door and tried the handle. It wasn't locked, so she pushed the door open. She put the other towel down by the shower door, and picked up her clothes. She left, pulling the door closed behind her.

She dressed quickly, then left the sleeping quarters.

¨¨¨

Mikhael blearily opened his eyes, disoriented. Then everything came back into focus, and he was fairly surprised to notice the blond locks nuzzled against his shoulder, and the tail wrapped around his ankle. His memory was often like this in the mornings, and he found himself in similar situations fairly often. He'd never woken up to a tail before. That was definitely a new experience. His memory returned to him fully, as he remembered exactly what he had been doing the night before. He couldn't help smiling, and realized this was the first time in quite a while he's actually _felt _his 22 years. Sometimes he felt fifty. He'd been forced to grow up pretty fast. He disentangled himself from Mikoto, and stepped off the bunk, picking up his clothes from various places around the room. He dressed, and walked back over to Mikoto. "Wake up"

She opened her eyes, and smiled sleepily. "That was pretty amazing"

"Time to get up"

"It is?" She complained

"Yep. Come on"

She grudgingly stood up, and Mikhael handed her clothes to her. She dressed and they walked out, heading towards the bridge. Nobody could be seen, but the sounds of breakfast echoed from somewhere back in the living area. They followed random corridors, until they came to a small galley. Everyone else was seated around the table. Eiko noticed the state of Mikhael's hair, and grinned slyly.

"Have a good night's sleep?"

"Better that you could imagine. I hope."

This brought laughs from everyone, though Mikoto was blushing furiously.

A metal bowl slid down the table towards Mikhael, who deftly caught it before it slid over the edge. He looked into the bowl, and his face turned into an expression of equal parts curiosity and disgust.

"What the hell is this?" he asked, eying the off white paste.

"Apparently 'the most suitable food for our metabolism'" replied Eiko, mimicking the ship's advice. 

"I think the bastard has a sense of humor." Said Mikhael, spooning the mush into his mouth. "My metabolism needs one thing: taste. And this stuff tastes like crap"

"You're eating it…"

"I'm hungry enough to eat it. I'll admit that it is filling, at least. Why couldn't Quina cook something?" 

"Because he's sleeping in. So is Steiner."

After wolfing down his food, he leaned back on his chair. "So, are we spending all day on the ship, or what?"

"Yep, I guess so. Unless…" Zidane said, closing his eyes. "No, the ship says there's a planet about ten minutes from here, that would be worth stopping on. We can manage the rest of the trip tonight, and wake up tomorrow around Terra.

"What's this place like?"

"Idyllic.Rolling plains, white beaches, tranquil forests… A living cliché."

"What are the chances of a place like that being near us?"

Zidane stared blankly for a moment, then laughed.

"What?"

"The ship just gave me the exact probability of finding a planet like that. He has an irritating sense of humor sometimes"

Dagger raised an eyebrow "He?"  
"For the sake of simplicity." He explained, defensively.

"Men!" Dagger sighed.

Mikhael thought for a moment. "Hey, Zidane… the ship can hear normal speech, right?"

"Yeah"

"Ask it if it could somehow use a normal voice, so everyone can hear it. Conversations are a little one sided right now."

A clear, condescendingly enunciated voice rang out through the room, "Like this?"

"Why did it choose that accent?"

"Because it knows that it's my second least favorite."

"What's your least?"

"This!" The ship announced, this time with a clipped twang.

Zidane groaned. "It's hard to imagine how annoying and intelligence that knows most of your thoughts can be when it sets it's mind to it."

A remembered question came back to Eiko. "Hey, ship…"

"Yes?"

"What were you originally used for?"

"I was an advanced, large crewed warship. Why?"

"I was wondering. I knew there would have been some military use, because of your fairly considerable weapon, but I didn't really know what else to expect."

"You think the weaponry you've seen is impressive…"

"I picked up two meanings in that statement. One was fairly crude, and you should be ashamed of yourself. Who the hell would program a ship with an over inflated opinion of bodily parts it doesn't even have. And a dirty, irritating personality."

"Sitting at a console every day for years on end had to have some reward for the engineers. They thought it was funny. If only they'd gotten the same guys to program Garland…"

"Program?"

"Yes. He was not really a Terran."

"I assumed that, he'd lived for far too long" said Mikoto, "But I thought he was like me. Bred in a lab."

"No. No living matter could last for as long as he lived, no matter how well designed. He was a machine. Too long alone set those delusions of godliness going. He refused to speak to me." The final sentence almost seemed like a pout. "Anyway, we're here. Please prepare yourselves for landing, it's going to be _smooth!_"

"They also built you with an over inflated ego…"

Eiko heard a mechanical sound from below the deck, and felt a slight jolt on landing.

"I told you it would be smooth. Have a safe trip."

They made their way back through the corridors, towards the outside exit, Steiner clanking hurriedly to catch up.

Mikhael saw the square of sunlight shining through the hatch, momentarily blinding him. They had landed near a lake, with a white beach ringing it the whole way around. Apart from that, they were in a rolling plain, with the occasional hill. He walked over towards the door, but before he stepped out, he noticed a heavy door in the wall. He stopped, and opened it. It was pitch black, but as he stepped in, blue light faded into the room. What he saw made him breathe in sharply, and whistle. He'd stumbled across the armory, and what an armory it was. It was huge, with all the walls, and many shelves lined with weaponry, much of it completely alien. On one shelf were a collection of spheres, each emitting a faint blue light. Next to them was what appeared to be a pair of gloves, but with cables running off them, and metal rods tracing the lines of where bones would be in a hand. He walked over to these, and picked one up. Seeing nothing immediately dangerous to him, he slipped it over his right hand. It hummed to life, and when he flexed his hand into a fist, arcs of charge ran up the rods to the fingertips. A flame-like nimbus coalesced around his hand. Ideas and images came to him unbidden, instructing him. He concentrated, looking at his hand, and blades of energy ran from the wrist of the glove. He concentrated again, and the blades vanished. More images came to him, and he hastily removed the glove at put it back on the shelf. He decided that a room loaded with explosives was not the best place to experiment with that thing. He moved over to an adjacent shelf, finding a pair of goggles with a slightly grey tint to them. He put these on, and noticed an overlay of images joining his sight. It showed temperature, and what appeared to be a gauge showing how breathable the air was. He slipped them off, and wandered back towards the door. He noticed a green glowing pad on one wall, and brushed it with his fingertips. A large door began to slide open, flooding the room with sunlight. The newly lit room revealed more things he hadn't noticed before., including a rack against one wall with a row of strange black shapes among them. They were roughly waist height, and rested on two fin-like plates. Mikhael walked over to one, looking closely at it. The top seemed padded, with a slight depression. There were seams on a panel on what seemed to be the front. He went look closely at these, when a shadow appeared against the sunlit floor. 

"I wondered where you went." Said Mikoto.

"This place is definitely worth checking out. Don't do anything rash, though. There are some fairly dangerous things in here…"

"What sort of place is this?"

"I think it's an armory."

Mikoto rolled her eyes disapprovingly. "Big boys toys…"

Mikhael grinned self-consciously. "Yep. And I'm trying to work out exactly what this toy here is." He looked at it, puzzled. Mikoto looked at it for a moment, then stepped over it, straddling it. The seams at the front glowed blue, and two handles popped out the side, along with a small screen panel in the middle.

"How did you know to do that?"

She grinned. "I didn't. I guessed."

She gripped the handles, which molded into a perfect grip shape for her hands. The thing also started to hum, and slowly lifted up off the ground.

"Nice! I think I know what this does now…" She grinned, then twisted one of the handles. The bike lurched forward, almost hitting the wall. 

"Oops. Backwards this time."

She twisted the handle a little the other way, and backed the bike out of the racks. Turning quickly, she faced the large bay doors and twisted the accelerator. The bike hummed higher, and she sped out the door. Not one to miss a challenge, Mikhael mounted the nearest bike and followed her out into the light. After a few clumsy lurches, he got the hang of it, speeding after the slowly disappearing bike ahead.

Mikoto heard a second hum behind her. She grinned, and gunned the engine, keeping ahead. But before she could act further, he copied the move, pulling up alongside her. 

"Gotcha!" he said, slowing down to a stop. She stopped a little ahead, then turned around and came back slowly. " I have a feeling you knew what you were doing…" he said suspiciously. 

"Kind of." She admitted. "I'd only seen them before. Garland used to show me recordings of Terra's civilization before the destruction of it's ecosystem. These things were a fairly standard transport there, but their ones were more stylish, suited for casual transport. These probably had some military use."

"Lucky we didn't find a weapon by accident, and set it off in there."

"Lucky we didn't… Race you to that tree?" She grinned mischievously, and pointed to a tree about two hundred meters away.

"You're on!" He said, revving the engine.

¨¨¨

Zidane lounged around the lakeshore. The sun was out brightly, with a few wisps of cloud in the sky. Dagger walked stood beside him.

"This place is nice.' She said, smiling

"I think it's because nothing lives here except plants, so nothing interferes.

"Except people like us"

"I don't think there _are _any other people like us anymore. The Terrans could have been, but I don't know"

"You could ask Mikoto."

"I could, but I have no idea where she is."

"I haven't seen her. I haven't seen Mikhael, either…"

"I wonder what they're up to?" Zidane wondered, mock-innocently

¨¨¨

Amarant sat lazily under a tree, watching the others. Eiko and Vivi were fooling about in the water, making an awful lot of noise. Zidane and dagger were walking along the beach, and Steiner was trying to find comfort in a patch of shade. Armor is not practical for traveling, it seems, he thought. Freya was off somewhere, and Mikhael and Mikoto were nowhere to be seen. He heard a rustle in the tree above him.

"Freya, I don't know what you're doing up there, but why don't you come down?"

Freya dropped down from the tree, landing nimbly as always.

"I have no idea how you do that, Freya" 

"Do what?"

"'Leap tall buildings in a single bound' would be an appropriate phrase."

"Practice and training."

"How did I know you'd say that? Anyway, I've had practice and training, and I can't jump like that. The real reason."

"Ok…" she said, flashing one of her rare grins. "I'm built for it. Dragoons are solely Burmecian, you may have noticed. We're fairly different from humans, in more ways than just cosmetic."

"Ah… so you're more than just an ugly face?"

"Hmph… You should talk. Anyway, my beauty can't be compared to your perceptions."

"Yeah, I guess when it's one rat to another, you're pretty stunning"

"Did you just want to be insulting, or did you actually want to talk to me."

"I can't help myself."

"You haven't been around Zidane long enough then. I think in your case he might even be a good influence."

"Me, influenced by monkey-boy? I don't think so…"

"He seems to have an effect on everyone else, usually for the better."

"He can keep his influence."

"Are you ever nice to anyone?"

"Not if I can help it, no."

Freya smiled mysteriously.

"What? What's funny?"

"That means if you are nice to somebody, you must really mean it."

"I guess you want me to say: 'Yes, it's all an act, deep down I love you?'"

"It'd be a pleasant surprise, but…no.I wouldn't expect that from anyone."

"You're a hero back in Burmecia…"

"Not hero enough."

"You still blame yourself?"

"How could I not? I should have been there, not agonizing over my poor, lost Fratley."

"Eagle eye hindsight, they call that. You always look back and say: 'I should have done better'. But, if you were back in that position… You'd probably do the same thing again."

"Wisdom's a rare thing from you."

"I just choose not to show it."

Amarant sat, thinking.

"I just realized, but I don't think I've ever seen you without that hat on. Why don't you ever take it off?"

"It saves trouble. People are rarely understanding."

"Zidane doesn't hide his tail."

"That's only a minor addition."

"Technicalities. Why don't you take it off? There's nobody here on this whole world but your friends."

Freya laughed. "Ha! So you don't mean it."

"Not really. I just act arrogant to save the trouble of a decent conversation."

"Fine, I'll take it off." Freya swept her hat off with a flourish.

"You don't look that bad, really."

"You really mean?" she said, raising an eyebrow.

"You're pretty. Maybe even beautiful."

"Do you mean that, or are you just saying it"

"Am I the kind of person who'd do that?"

'…No. You're not…"

Freya was silent. 

"Nobody's ever said that to me before…"

"What about Fratley?"

"He admired my strength, my personality. I don't know what he really thought, though. He never really told me."

"You clung to that for so many years?"

"I know. People seem so noble in retrospect. I lost sight of reality, and got carried away with increasingly false interpretations of memories."

"I've always gone by the philosophy that if you don't try, you can't fail."

"You learn from your mistakes."

"Have you?" He asked.

"In a way. I've learned never to get so carried away. I've also learned to accept that not everyone will be your knight in shining armor, the perfect man. There's no such thing…"

"Everyone has their own idea of the perfect partner."

"You're right. I think Dagger found hers."

"Zidane?"

"Yeah. She couldn't have gone on without him, with all that happened to her in her life."

"She's changed him, too. I remember him, and he's much different now."

"He's grown from a boy, into more of the hero he is."

"Hero?" 

"That's the usual title gained from saving the world." She replied, a little whimsically.

"I don't think I'll ever understand you, Freya."

"You won't if you don't try."

"I'll take that as a challenge, then. To get to know you better."

"That's one way of putting it."

¨¨¨

Eiko and Vivi were now completely drenched.

"Look at me, I'm wet all over!" Eiko complained, trying to wring the water out of her clothes.

"It's your own fault."

"How is it my fault? You're the one who pushed me in."

"Well, you splashed me. Anyway, we're both wet, so we're even."

"At least it's sunny. Why don't we sit down and try to get dry before we have to leave."

"Not in the sand. On the grass. Otherwise we'll end up as sandy as we are wet."

"Good thinking."

They walked over and sat down, neither of them saying anything. Eiko found herself staring at Vivi. He was not powerfully built, but not too skinny. His black, once short hair now came just to shoulder length. This was an indicator of just how long it had been since the beginning of all this. Most of the time had been spent in Madain sari. She looked critically at his hair again.

"Your hair's a knotted mess."

"I can't do anything about that. It's too long."

"That isn't a reason. It just needs more attention."

"I like it short, anyway."

"I think it looks nice long."

"You don't have to manage it."

"No, but I manage my own fine. Come here, I'll fix it for you."

"What, in your lap?"

"I haven't got a problem with it. Besides, it makes things easier."

"Fine."

Eiko ran her fingers through his hair, trying to work out the knots.

"You've made an awful mess of this."

"I know. These sorts of things were never a problem before."

"Did you keep it cut?"

"No, it didn't grow, at all. That's why I wore the hat."

"Why didn't it grow? And why did it start once you were older?"

"I'm not sure. It must have been something… they… did to me."

"I don't want to know."

"Neither do I, but I'll find out one day. There are lots of things I need to know. I don't even know a thing about Black magic."

"You must…"

"I know how to use it, but only to the limits of what I've learned. I don't know what it can do, I don't know it's real basis, I don't know of any real black mages, people who were born with the skill."

"I'm sure you'll find out, one day."

"I hope so…"

"…There, that's better. You should run a brush through it properly, when we get back to the ship."

"Yeah…"

Vivi started to get up.

"No, stay. I like this."

Vivi settled back down against her and Eiko draped her arms loosely around him.

It's amazing what happens if you just stop avoiding things, he thought to himself.

¨¨¨

Zidane looked over to where Vivi and Eiko were before, and was quite surprised at what he saw.

Dagger followed his gaze. "That's so sweet…"

"Yeah…" He looked up at the darkening sky, the horizon already shifting from orange to a deepening purple.

"We'd better head back. Try and round everyone up."

"No need. They've all wandered back."

"That makes things easier."

He stood up, and walked back towards the ship's ramp. Mikhael and Mikoto were already standing outside the ship, near an opening he hadn't noticed before.

"What's that door there?" he asked.

"The armory."

"Ah. I thought there would be one somewhere. Let's head up."

"What are we going to do about dinner?"

"I'll see if Quina will cook something. I don't trust the ship much, especially when it comes to food."

"Suits me." 

¨¨¨

They all sat back at the galley table, this time contented, and with empty plates left behind.

"I won't say much for his personality, but he's a good cook. Where is he now, by the way?" asked Mikhael.

"Finishing off the leftovers."

"Ah. Well, I think I'll head off to bed."

"Me too." agreed Vivi.

''Night all" waved Mikhael, walking out the small door.

(There! I finished chapter two. I feel so special, I'm going to start on three straightaway. Hope you all enjoyed yourselves ^-^)__


	5. Home sweet Home...

Chapter Three:

Home sweet home… 

Eiko woke again to the artificial light of the Invincible, this time being careful not to hit her head. She rolled off the bunk, and placed one foot on the ladder. Peering up, she saw that Vivi was still asleep. She considered waking him up, and decided it would be best if he didn't sleep in. They were landing on Terra today. She brushed his bangs out of his face, and his eyelids fluttered open. 

"This has to be one of the nicest ways to wake up," he said.

"You wouldn't be getting too sentimental on me, would you?"

"I'm not sure, but whatever it is, I like it."

"I'm going over to the bridge. You coming?"

"Yeah."

Eiko jumped off the ladder, and Vivi climbed down. The door hissed open, then hissed imperiously closed behind them.

After walking through the final door to the bridge, they were met by a sight that stopped them in their tracks. The once stark and mysterious planet of mushrooms had changed. Instead… were the ruins of a civilization. Crumbling spires clawed brokenly to the sky, as if they were trying to swim free of their grave of rubble. 

"I didn't know we had landed already," said Eiko, confused.

"Neither did I," replied Zidane. "The ship took things into it's own hands."

Eiko looked out the window again. "My god…" she breathed.

"Yeah. I don't know what those mushrooms were for, but they must have been far above the surface." Zidane was pacing again, his tail swishing.

"Maybe to keep the inhabitants of them far from the surface?" Suggested Dagger, half to herself.

"Why?"

"Who knows? Do you think it's safe?"

The ship cut in. "Atmosphere seems safe. There is no life detected on the surface, either."

"Any other things to watch out for?"

"This was once a city, as you may have noticed. Things are falling down, above and below. So, watch your head and your step." 

"Ok…. Time to move out"

They began the walk towards the main exit. They were almost there when Mikhael stopped. "Wait. There might not be anything alive out there, but I don't trust a dead city. Plus, some gear might be handy if something goes wrong."

"Good idea. Lets see what we can find in the armory."

They turned off, entering the small door. As usual, light faded into the room on entry.

"Last time I came here, everything seemed pretty alien and unusable, to me," warned Mikhael.

"There should be something. Mikoto, if you recognise anything, give me a shout. Let's get looking." 

"Decisive as ever, Zidane" noted Dagger, affectionately.

"Yep"

Mikoto wandered off among the shelves. "We should stay away from the most advanced stuff, it's hard to use, and unpredictable." After a while, she set eyes on a rack. "Aha!"

"Found something?" asked Zidane

"Rifles"

"What's a rifle?", Eiko asked curiously.

"Advanced projectile weapon. Some, like these ones, work a bit like the cannons you have now."

"Might be useful," noted Mikhael, taking one off the rack.

"Be careful. The safety switch is on now, so it won't fire. That catch at the side readies the weapon, the trigger near the handle fires. It's got a kick to it, so you'll have to keep it still when you fire. It fires fast, but only use it in bursts if you can help it. Hold the trigger down and it could jam. Everyone clear?"

"Everyone? Why don't I just use magic?" asked Vivi, a little nervous.

"Because I'm not sure how various elements work here, and these seem to be the core of your magic."

"You're right." 

One by one, they each took one from the rack. Mikoto also opened a chest below the rack and took out several metal containers, as well as a metal case.

"What are they?"

"Spare clips. If you run out, release the old one, clip in the new. The case is just general survival gear."

"Are we ready now?" asked Zidane, getting used to the feel of the rifle.

"Yep."

"Where'd you know all this from?"

"Garland and tapes, mainly."

"Save it for later," said Zidane, taking his rifle off safety. "Let's go."

They filed out the door, closing it behind them. At first hand, the landscape was eerie, to say the least. Every now and then there was a burned wreck of some machine on the ground, though wether this was Kuja's fault or earlier no one was sure. Eventually, they found themselves among the ruined buildings. There was no sound, other than the occasional gust of wind, or the creak of a ruin. Sharp metal supports jutted from rubble like skeletal ribs, as if part of the corpse of the city.

When the silence was broken, it was evident to all very quickly. A sound, like the hiss of quickly boiling water, seeped from an alley, followed by more.

"Guys, I think those things are back," said Mikhael, uneasy.

"How many this time?" asked Zidane

"More than two." 

"Damn. Ok, fan out, keep out of friendly fire. If it gets rough, we can make a fighting retreat. Don't get cornered."

"Thanks, General." Quipped Eiko, nervously.

Zidane didn't reply, and Eiko took position behind some wreckage. The first beast poked its head around the corner, to be met by rattling gunfire. More hissing ensued followed by a quick dash out of their hiding place. Faced by four charging targets, Eiko picked one, and fired at it. The rifle kicked in her hands, making most of the bullets miss their mark. She swore, braced herself, and fired again. A hiss of pain and a spray of ichor from its midsection rewarded her. This one hissed, and fell back for a moment, hissing rapidly.

"I think they're communicating…" Eiko warned.

"How? They looked fairly unintelligent."

"I think they're part of a collective consciousness. Like bees, and ants," Freya suggested. 

"Why does it matter? We're supposed to be killing them." Amarant shouted over the bark of his rifle.

Eiko braced herself again, and fired. This time she hit an artery, triggering a fountain of blood. The beast fell to the floor, twitching. She didn't stop to celebrate, instead taking aim at the next closest. She swore again, noticing more of them stepping out of the alley, as well as another two coming from the opposite side. She opened fire again, this time more panicked.

"Oh god…" Dagger shouted.

"What?" Zidane yelled back

"Look up."

Zidane did. Climbing on the building above them were a collection of different black shapes, these roughly man sized. Zidane raised his gun and fired off a volley at them. Almost in unison, they pushed off the wall, landing hard on the street in front of him. They were his height, but covered in spikes, with huge claws for hands. They hissed at the larger beasts, which then charged. Zidane was now firing frantically. Soon, three of the beasts lay dead from their collective fire. The man-beasts took cover, still watching. It seemed the beasts were losing again, with all the larger ones now dead. The smaller ones charged on an unheard signal, much faster than the others. None went for Zidane, but two attacked Freya. 

They were almost upon her when she dived backwards, opening fire. Landing in a roll, she quickly found herself diving sideways again, as the beasts had matched her jumping ability. Freya fought on, trying to outjump the fiends.

Eiko did not posses the dragoon's skills, and found herself in a dangerous situation. Another two of the man-beasts were upon her, not bothering to run. Just slowly stalking her as she stepped backwards away, She fired a burst, which went completely wild, missing both of the beasts. Panic overtaking, she screamed and turned; hoping against hope she could flee. She had not seen them against Freya… A stunning blow to her back made her drop the rifle, stumbling forward, almost falling. She staggered back upright, and continued her flight. Someone screamed behind her, and she was hit again, knocking her off her feet. She rolled onto her back, as a set of claws hit where she just was. The next time… She wasn't so lucky. She felt the claws sink into her chest, shooting pain through her body. Feeling a wetness that dawned on her to be her own blood spread over her, she felt gripping terror she'd never matched, and futility, and anger, and love. And she knew none of it mattered, as she knew she was about to die…

  "Eiko! Damn, she's down, and I don't know how bad it is!" Zidane yelled, whom one beast only had set upon. He finally got in a lucky shot, puncturing the beast's skull. It went down, and Zidane looked around. Freya was up on a window ledge, firing at a beast trying to climb up to her. Another lay dead below her. Zidane fired, knocking the beast from the wall. It fell onto it's back, and could not get up before Freya jumped down. She placed the gun against it's head, and fired, shattering it's skull. 

Mikhael was fighting beside Vivi, with Mikoto and Amarant close by. Steiner, of course, was standing near Dagger protectively behind cover. One by one, the beasts were losing, but the two who had attacked Eiko were still alive, pacing around where she had fallen. Zidane fired off a burst, attracting their attention. They turned to him, and he found his fire joined by four others', which made quick work of the two remaining. Zidane looked around, assessing everyone's injuries. Quina, who he hadn't noticed before, was prying off a beast's exoskeleton with his ever-present fork. 

"What are you doing, Quina?"

"I seeing if it taste good!"

"Not now. Eiko's hurt."

Freya had already run over to where Eiko lay. She shook her head sadly.

"What's wrong?" Zidane said, walking over. "How bad is it?"

"Very. I don't even have to check for a pulse."

Zidane looked closely, and saw the massive wound in Eiko's chest, blood now weakly flowing out.

"Oh god…" said Mikoto, walking up. "Dagger! Come quickly!"

Dagger ran over, and knelt next to Eiko. "She's to far gone to save…" Dagger brushed Eiko's hair out of her face. "I'm sorry, Eiko. We all are. If you can hear this, wherever you are, I hope you feel a little better." Tears were rolling down Dagger's cheeks now. Freya just bowed her head. Amarant looked sadly at Eiko's battered body.

"She wasn't all that bad, really." Amarant said.

Vivi was simply in shock. He couldn't say anything. Just hours ago she'd been laughing, talking, joking. Now she lay dead, in a forgotten city on a planet far from her home. He turned to Dagger. "Can you… clean her up a bit? It's more dignified."

Dagger nodded, and closed her eyes. Healing energies flowed from her hands, closing the wound. She looked over to Vivi, who was still silent. Steiner stood beside him; helmet held to his heart, tears flowing openly down his face. 

Vivi knelt down next to Eiko, lightly touching her face. Her skin was cold, and Vivi felt something else, too. Like opening his eyes for the first time, he felt a new sense surface in him. He felt the flow of his friend's souls around him, and the absence of Eiko's. He felt the emptiness inside her, and also felt the current of death. 

_Do you understand what you feel, and what this means? _Vivi was startled. There was a voice in his head, like what Mikhael had described. He formed an answer in his mind._ What are you?_

You are not ready to be told that. But I can help you. You have grown in power, and I can show you the way.

_The way to what? _Vivi thought back 

_You will understand. Place your hands to her skin._

Vivi did so, puzzled. _I don't understand._

_You will. Feel the depths of the emptiness that is in her. That is death. Put every part of your mind into willing one thing, as powerfully as you can._

_Will what thing? _Vivi asked, still puzzled.

Will yourself to Eiko. Imagine, in any way you can, fighting your way to her.

Vivi was still shocked. _Won't that kill me, if it did anything?_

_In a way, yes. But you are more than other people. You recall you said you didn't understand your magic? What you will experience now is the depths of it._

Vivi then felt a presence in his mind, one of power, kindness, and forcefulness, all in one. He didn't understand at all, but it gave him strength. He did what he was told, willing with all his mind to be with Eiko, to find her, to fight towards her. He felt Death rush to welcome him, and he lost consciousness.

Zidane saw Vivi collapse forward, like a puppet with it's strings cut. "Vivi must have been wounded, or something. Quickly!"

Dagger lowered Vivi on to his back beside Eiko, inspecting him for any wound. "He's fine. Must be shock, or exhaustion. I'll check though, just to be sure." Dagger placed two fingers to Vivi's neck. "Oh my god, he has no pulse. But he's unhurt. I don't understand…"

Don't panic. There is more going on than meets the eye.

Dagger jumped. "Did you just hear that?"

Zidane looked spooked. "I did."

Vivi awoke, finding himself on a cobblestone path leading to a large house. Dusk was falling. Vivi stood up and brushed himself off. Walking up the path, he came to a doorway. It was twice his height, and made of some dark wood. There were two statues on either side, one in marble, and one in ebony. Both were of a hooded figure. Vivi placed his hand on the door handle, half expecting it to swing of it's own accord creakily. It didn't. He pushed in the doors, finding it surprisingly easy. They must be cleverly counterweighted, he thought. Through the doors, he found himself in a grand hallway, with a stone floor in a chessboard pattern. Everything inside was of monochrome shades. Walking down the hallway, his boots echoed eerily, a constant '_tap tap' _that came back seconds later, like there was someone else nearby. He heard a sob from the intersection ahead. There _was _someone nearby. He came to the intersection, and looked around the corner Eiko was there, huddled into a ball. He walked over to her, and knelt down. "It's ok. I'm here," he whispered.

"Vivi? Where am I? I thought… I did…"

"Yes. You died. I'm taking you back"

"How? You can't."

"I don't care if I can't. Now stand up."

She did so, and Vivi placed his arms around her shoulders. "It's this way. Come."

She nodded, and they walked back down the hallway, coming to the door again. He pulled at the handle, and this time the door was stiff and rusted. "It's easy to enter death, but so hard to leave…" he mused.

"Philosophy?"

"No, practicality. Help me pull."

She grabbed the handle, and they pulled together. The door slowly swung open, and they stepped onto the path outside. It quickly disappeared into mist. They walked along the path, until they both passed out again.

Vivi found himself back in his body, freezing cold. He gasped, and pulled himself to his feet. He looked down at Eiko, who coughed weakly, then gasped, then started breathing strongly. He reached out his hand and helped her up. She looked around for a moment, then fell sobbing into his arms. 

"I was so alone…" she whispered.

"Never again. I'm here…" He hugged her tighter for a moment, then released her, and looked around. Everyone was staring, shocked, except Quina, who was jumping happily, and Steiner, who was on his knees.

"Master Vivi! Eiko was… You were…"

"Dead." Vivi finished.

"How! Do you have such power?" gasped Steiner.

"Don't worry yourself. I don't know either."

Freya muttered one word to herself, shocked into silence. "Necromancer."

"What?"

"A word from a Burmecian myth. Necromancer. I think that's as good a word as any for what you just did."

Zidane turned to Freya. "You've told me that one. I never thought I'd see it come true."

Dagger was curious. "How did you know what to do? How did you even know you could?"

"A voice in my head told me."

Amarant seemed amused. "Isn't that a mental illness?"

"Whatever." Vivi brushed off the halfhearted insult. "Do you think it's safe to rest? I'm tired."

"Of course." Zidane agreed. "Do you think any of these buildings would be okay?"

"That one over there looks relatively stable."

Vivi only realized how tired he was when they walked into the building. Yawning, he went over to a corner where there was little rubble and debris, and settled down to sleep.

_Vivi found himself in a graveyard. The sky was a roiling purple, and there were dead trees scattered randomly. There was a think bank of fog obscuring everything past a few metres. A wail from further away faded into his hearing, but Vivi couldn't pinpoint the direction it came from._

_"Please, help me…" Vivi was startled by a whisper just behind him. He turned, but nobody was there._

_"Help me. Get me out of here," a different voice pleaded, louder this time._

_"Let me free!" A harsher voice shouted. Soon, a cacophony of voices was echoing around in his head, swelling to a painful level. He fell to his knees and screamed. "Stop! Leave me alone!"_

Vivi sat bolt upright and looked around. _Just a dream,_ he thought.

He was not expecting an answer. "_Not exactly. It wasn't real, but it wasn't a dream either. Those voices were real. They were the voices of the dead."_

"_You again? Why would the dead want to speak to me? How can I make them stop?"_

_"They speak to you because you are a necromancer. They want life, for many reasons. Revenge, love, ambition… Few can leave the house of Death alone. You will only hear them while you sleep, when your unconscious though has more control. If you listened carefully, you might hear them while you are awake. Once you establish more control, they will leave you alone. Oh, and incidentally, something has happened which you may find a mixed blessing. It is likely to help some things a little further. I'll explain later, once you discover it for yourself."_

_"Great. How do I exert my control?"_

_"Try telling them to stop."_

_"Will they listen? I already did, nothing happened."_

_"You pleaded, not ordered. That makes a difference. Try that, next time."_

_"What were you talking about before?"_

There was no answer now. He looked around the darkened building. The place was in ruins. The others were sleeping in various places around the room. Eiko was nearby, sleeping fitfully. Vivi shrugged, and leaned back against the wall. He wasn't going to get any more sleep tonight. He closed his eyes for a moment –

Fire sweeping through narrow streets, screams of pain and loss as people writhed on the ground aflame. A mighty wind buffeting anything left unburned, knocking over signs and tables. Some giant beast watching from the sky with a predatorial gaze –

Vivi's eyes snapped open. "What the hell was that…." he said uneasily. The room was unchanged. Everyone was still asleep. He couldn't hear anything outside, either.  He felt himself drifting off again – 

Running, running through winding, debris littered streets as still more screams cut through the air. Into a house, where a man held the door open. He slams it shut after a couple enters. They are both mortally wounded, one with horrid burns scarring her face, and one hand burned to a blackened crisp. She thrust a bundle of rags at the man, who nods sadly, tears in his eyes. He hurries over to the pantry, where a small door leads to the cellar. He gives the dying couple a final glance, and slams the door, hurrying down the stairs. There is a crash from above, and there is screaming. Incoherent noises of pure fear and pain echo down the stairwell –

- Snapping Vivi into consciousness as the screams continue into reality. He looked around in a panic, and saw Eiko huddled in a ball in the opposite corner of the room. Her screams died to sobs as Vivi walked over to her.

"Nightmare?" he asked.

She looked up, and threw herself into his arms. "It was horrible, Vivi. You wouldn't believe how horrible it was. I saw –"

"The death of your city?" Vivi finished questioningly.

"How did you know?" she asked, already knowing the answer.

"I had the same dream. Eiko, I – I never thought of what happened that way."

"I used to have that dream all the time. Now it only happens every now and again. Never usually that bad, though."

"Is that what really happened? The dream, I mean?"

"Yes. That man was my grandfather."

"Did you- Did you ever find your parents bodies?"

"No. There was nothing left. I found where they died, though. The fire was so hot that the only signs there were two flat disks of gold."

"Disks of gold?"

"Their rings… My grandfather reformed those rings for me. We took them out in our boat one day, and dropped them over the side. He said… he said they always loved to sail together. That the ocean would have been where they'd like to be remembered… God, we're a morbid pair, aren't we!" She grinned, and let go of his shoulders. "I don't think I'll be able to get back to sleep."

"Me neither."

"Why don't we sit and talk then. I don't think morning's far off."

They talked for hours, until the first touches of dawn reached the barren gray clouds. The pinkish hue made the wasteland a little less depressing.

"The others will be awake soon," Vivi said.

"Probably. Thanks for being there Vivi. I was so scared last night."

"Me too." He looked into her eyes for a moment, and then kissed her. He felt her tongue brush against his, and deepened the kiss, drawing her closer to him. She slid her hands up his back, running her fingers through his hair. She felt she could have gone on like this forever, until she heard someone clear their throat behind her. She broke away quickly and turned around to see a grinning Zidane. Vivi groaned.

"Don't worry. I'm the only one awake. I won't tell them."

"Thanks. I really don't think I could stand them if they knew" Eiko said.

"It took you long enough, Vivi" remarked Zidane.

"Oh, I'm sorry I'm not as immoral as you are, Zidane." He shot back, grinning.

"Ouch, you win. Anyway, I think we'd better wake the others and head off. I'd like to find what we were supposed to be looking for, whatever it is."

After much grumbling and complaints the rest were awake. They removed the door again, noticing the faded picture of a ruffled flag with four colors, and a word in some strange language. Continuing down the street, the city seemed much the same as before. There were no whole buildings, and there were burned wrecks every now and again. As the reached the top of a sloping street, the city unfolded before them. The buildings seemed to go on forever, but there was a cleared area not far from where they stood. It was plain of concrete, with only one feature. There was a huge building, looking like the top half of a hexagon was jutting out of the ground.

"What that?" Asked Quina.

"I dunno." Answered Zidane "But it looks a lot different to anything else around here. Let's keep going."

They continued down the street, until they reached the edge of that great plain. It took them almost an hour to reach the huge structure. It loomed over their heads, a giant wall.  A zigzag crack went from side to side, but there was no other feature at all.

"Well, it's not a building," said Amarant.

"Yes it is," replied Eiko. "Someone built is, so it's a building"

"Whatever."

"I'll take a look on top," said Freya, leaping quickly almost to the top and scrambling up the sloped side to the top. 

"There's a hatch!" she shouted. "I'm going in, I'll be back in a moment."

Freya opened the small hatch, and dropped down. There was a soft green light flooding the area, and some sort of machinery against the far left wall. Freya walked over to it, noticing then that there was a large red button, the size of her hand. She shrugged, and pressed it. A low drone came from somewhere below, followed by a rusty creak. Then, to her utmost surprise, the wall leading to the others opened, and the floor began to tilt. Afraid of some sort of trap, she quickly leaped through the widening gap to the outside. The others stood there, staring as the door finished opening. The floor had stopped tilting, creating a fairly steep incline leading downwards into blackness.

Zidane looked slowly at each of the others, then nodded. "That's where we're going. Ready your weapons, we don't know what's down there…"

They checked their rifles, then walked towards the yawning cavern…


End file.
